Staking under the 2026 SARS draft crypto guide

What the 2026 draft guide covers

SARS published its Draft Guide to the Taxation of Crypto Assets on 1 July 2026, with public comments due by 31 August 2026. Sections 4.7 and 4.8, illustrated by Examples 13 to 17, set out how staking is taxed and draw a clear parallel with mining. This page summarises that treatment and shows how Coinfig applies it.

Staking rewards are income at receipt

Under the draft guide, staking rewards are included in gross income at their rand market value at the earlier of receipt or accrual. In practice this is generally the moment the reward crypto is added to your wallet and you can deal with it. The value goes into gross income for that year of assessment.

The guide treats proof of stake the same way as mining under proof of work. Where a miner earns block rewards for validating transactions, a staker earns rewards for helping secure the network, and both are brought into income at market value when the reward arises.

The income value becomes your cost

The rand value you declare as income becomes the cost of those coins for the later disposal. The draft guide reaches this through the trading stock rules in sections 11(a) and 22 of the Income Tax Act, so the amount already taxed as income is allowed as a cost when you sell. The effect is that the same value is not taxed twice. Only the movement between the value at receipt and the proceeds on disposal falls to be taxed on the later sale or swap.

Locking and unlocking is not a disposal

Moving coins into or out of staking, that is locking them up to stake and later unlocking them, is not a disposal. You still hold the same asset throughout, so no capital gain or loss and no revenue event arises simply from staking or unstaking. The taxable events are the reward coming in as income and the eventual disposal of the coins.

Slashing and forfeiture

Some networks penalise validators by slashing, where staked coins are reduced or forfeited. The draft guide does not give a single answer here and instead leaves the consequences to the facts of the arrangement. Keep clear records of any forfeiture, including the date, the quantity of coins lost and the reason, so the correct treatment can be worked out and supported.

Staked coins stay on your balance sheet

Coins that are locked in staking remain your assets. For the year-end statement of assets and liabilities in your return, include staked balances at their value along with the rest of your holdings. Locking coins to stake does not remove them from your assets.

Mining parallels in brief

Because the guide aligns staking with mining, the mining rules are useful context.

• Mining is treated as carrying on a trade.
• Trade expenses may be deductible, such as electricity under section 11(a) and wear and tear on equipment under section 11(e).
• Mining pools are taxed as partnerships under section 24H, so each participant accounts for a share of the pool result.

Staking through a pool follows similar logic, with each participant accounting for their share of the rewards.

How Coinfig handles staking

Coinfig applies the draft guide treatment automatically across your connected accounts.

• Staking rewards are recognised as income at market value on the day of receipt.
• That value carries as the cost of the coins for a later disposal, so you are not taxed twice on the same amount.
• Staking and unstaking movements are treated as transfers with no tax effect, not disposals.
• Reward income appears separately from capital gains in your report, so the income and the later disposal gain are easy to reconcile to the right parts of your return.

Still a draft

The Draft Guide to the Taxation of Crypto Assets is a draft open for public comment and does not create a practice generally prevailing. It reflects SARS thinking rather than settled law. Check your own situation with a registered tax practitioner.