Canada Crypto Tax Guide for Solana Users

In Canada, centralized crypto exchanges may report customer account and transaction information to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) for tax compliance purposes, while also meeting Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements overseen by FINTRAC.

Who this is for

• Solana users who are Canadian tax residents
• Traders, collectors, and DeFi users who need to report crypto activity to the CRA
• Anyone using Netrunner to generate Canadian crypto tax reports

Why this matters

The CRA treats cryptocurrency as a commodity (property), not currency. Every sale, swap, or spend triggers a taxable event that must be reported on your tax return.

Netrunner tracks your Solana transactions and calculates your capital gains, losses, and income using the Adjusted Cost Base (ACB) method—the only method the CRA allows.

How crypto is taxed in Canada (high level)

You generally owe taxes when:

• You sell crypto for CAD or any fiat currency
• You trade one crypto for another (including SOL to USDC)
• You spend crypto on goods or services
• You receive crypto as income (staking rewards, airdrops, mining, payment for work)

You generally do not owe taxes when:

• You buy crypto with CAD
• You hold crypto without selling (unrealized gains)
• You transfer crypto between your own wallets
• You donate crypto to a registered charity

What Netrunner does for Canadian taxes

• Calculates capital gains and losses using the ACB method (mandatory in Canada)
• Tracks the fair market value (FMV) of all transactions in CAD
• Labels transaction types: swaps, staking rewards, LP deposits, NFT trades
• Generates reports compatible with Schedule 3
• Separates income (staking, airdrops) from capital gains (trades, sales)

Note: Netrunner generates tax reports. It does not file your taxes or provide tax advice. You or your accountant use the reports to complete your return.

Canadian tax forms supported by Netrunner

• Schedule 3 (Capital Gains or Losses) — Report all crypto dispositions here. 50% of net capital gains flows to Line 12700 of your T1 General.
• Income Summary — Shows staking rewards, airdrops, and other crypto income to report on your T1.
• Transaction History (CSV) — Full record of all transactions for your records or accountant.

Capital gains tax rates in Canada

Canada uses a 50% inclusion rate for capital gains. Only half of your gain is added to taxable income.

Example: You sell crypto for a $10,000 profit. $5,000 is added to your taxable income and taxed at your marginal rate.

2025 Federal Tax Brackets

Provincial rates stack on top. Combined rates range from ~44% (Nunavut) to ~54% (Nova Scotia) at the highest brackets.

Effective capital gains rate: At a 50% marginal rate, your effective rate on capital gains is ~25% (50% inclusion × 50% tax rate).

How common Solana activity is taxed

Trades and swaps

Every swap triggers a capital gain or loss. Trading SOL for USDC, swapping tokens on Jupiter, or converting to any other crypto—all taxable events.

Netrunner calculates the gain as: Proceeds (FMV in CAD) – ACB = Capital Gain/Loss

NFTs

• Buying an NFT with SOL — Taxable. You disposed of SOL.
• Selling an NFT — Taxable. Capital gain or loss based on your cost basis.
• Minting an NFT — The SOL spent becomes part of your NFT's cost basis.

Staking rewards

Staking rewards are income taxed at FMV when you receive them. The FMV becomes your cost basis for future capital gains when you sell.

Good news: The CRA confirmed in January 2025 that depositing crypto for staking does NOT trigger a disposition if you retain beneficial ownership.

DeFi lending and yield

• LP deposits and withdrawals — The CRA considers these dispositions (exchange of property). Each contribution/withdrawal can trigger capital gains.
• Yield and rewards — Taxed as income at FMV when received.
• Interest from lending — Income at FMV when paid.

Airdrops

Treatment varies:

• Airdrops requiring action (claiming, holding tokens) — Often income at FMV when received
• Unsolicited airdrops — May have $0 cost basis; entire proceeds become gains on disposal

Netrunner labels airdrops separately so you can review with your accountant.

Transfers

Moving crypto between your own wallets is not taxable. Netrunner identifies these as transfers and excludes them from gain/loss calculations.

The Adjusted Cost Base (ACB) method

The CRA requires ACB for all identical property. FIFO, LIFO, and HIFO are not permitted in Canada.

How ACB works

Every time you buy more of the same crypto, you recalculate the weighted average:

ACB per unit = Total cost of all units ÷ Total number of units

Example:

• Buy 1 SOL at $100
• Buy 1 SOL at $200
• Total: 2 SOL, $300 cost
• ACB per SOL = $150

When you sell 0.5 SOL for $125:

• Cost basis = 0.5 × $150 = $75
• Capital gain = $125 – $75 = $50

Netrunner calculates ACB automatically across all your transactions.

Superficial loss rule (Canada's wash sale equivalent)

A capital loss is denied if:

• You sell crypto at a loss
• You (or an affiliated person) buy the same crypto within 30 days before OR after the sale
• You still own it at the end of the 30th day after the sale

The 61-day window:

• 30 days before sale + sale date + 30 days after = 61 days

What happens to denied losses:

The loss is added to the ACB of the repurchased crypto. You get the benefit when you eventually sell without triggering the rule again.

How to avoid:

• Wait 31 full days before rebuying the same crypto
• Buy a different crypto during the waiting period (SOL → ETH is fine)
• Stablecoins are different assets (selling SOL at a loss and buying USDC is fine)

Key deadlines (2025 tax year)

Important: If you or your spouse is self-employed, you get the June 15 filing extension, but any balance owing is still due April 30 to avoid interest charges.

T1135: Foreign property reporting

If your specified foreign property exceeds $100,000 CAD total cost at any time during the year, you may need to file Form T1135.

The CRA's view: crypto may be "foreign property" depending on where it's held. Crypto on non-Canadian exchanges likely requires T1135.

Penalties for late filing: $25/day up to $2,500; gross negligence penalties up to $12,000.

Consult your accountant if your holdings approach this threshold.

Step by step: filing Canadian crypto taxes with Netrunner

• Connect your wallets — Link all Solana wallets you used during the tax year
• Wait for indexing — Netrunner indexes ~60,000 transactions in about 5 minutes
• Review transactions — Check the dashboard for any requiring attention
• Fix Unknown labels — Use bulk labeling to categorize transactions Netrunner couldn't auto-identify
• Select tax year — Choose the fiscal year (January 1 – December 31)
• Generate reports — Export Schedule 3 compatible reports and income summary
• File your return — Use the reports to complete your T1 General and Schedule 3, or provide them to your accountant

What you should see

• Capital gains summary showing total gains, losses, and net position
• Income summary showing staking rewards, airdrops, and other income
• Schedule 3 compatible format ready for your tax return
• Full transaction history with ACB calculations for your records

FAQ

Do I pay taxes on crypto-to-crypto trades in Canada?

Yes. Swapping SOL for USDC, trading tokens on a DEX, or exchanging one NFT for another—all are taxable dispositions. The CRA treats these as property sales subject to capital gains tax.

What's the difference between capital gains and income for crypto?

Capital gains (from selling/trading) have a 50% inclusion rate—only half is taxable. Income (from staking, airdrops, mining) is 100% taxable at your marginal rate. The distinction matters.

Can I use FIFO or HIFO in Canada?

No. The CRA requires the Adjusted Cost Base (ACB) method for all identical property. Netrunner automatically calculates ACB for your Solana transactions.

What if I have losses? Can I carry them forward?

Yes. Capital losses can offset capital gains from any source (crypto, stocks, real estate). If losses exceed gains, you can carry them back 3 years or forward indefinitely. You cannot use capital losses to offset regular income (except in year of death).

Does Canada have a gift tax on crypto?

No gift tax exists in Canada. However, gifting crypto triggers a disposition for the giver at FMV. You may owe capital gains tax on the "phantom" gain. The recipient's cost basis becomes the FMV at the time of the gift.

How do I reconcile unlabelled transactions?

Some transactions can't be auto-labeled—especially complex DeFi interactions or transactions with missing metadata. Review these manually and apply the correct label.

How to fix the missing cost basis?

If you transferred crypto from another wallet or exchange without importing history, Netrunner may not have the original purchase price. You can manually set the cost basis or import additional transaction history.

How are staking rewards viewed by CRA?

Staking rewards are income (100% taxable), not capital gains (50% taxable). Make sure staking transactions are labeled correctly. The distinction significantly affects your tax bill.

2025 updates to watch

• Capital gains inclusion rate — The proposed increase from 50% to 66.67% was cancelled in March 2025. Rate remains at 50%.
• CARF (Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework) — Effective January 1, 2026. Crypto service providers must report user activity to the CRA starting in 2027.
• CRA enforcement — The Commissioner identified crypto-assets as an "emerging high-risk area" with increased compliance focus.

File Your Solana Taxes Without the Headache

Tracking crypto taxes manually breaks at a few hundred transactions. DeFi swaps, staking rewards, NFT trades, LP positions—each one needs ACB calculations in CAD and proper labels.

Netrunner handles this automatically for Solana.

Connect your wallets, wait a few minutes for indexing, and get accurate capital gains, income, and expense reports ready for filing.

What you get:

• Auto-labeling for swaps, staking, LPs, NFTs, and DeFi transactions
• Proper ACB calculations (the only method CRA allows)
• Schedule 3 compatible exports
• Support for Coinbase and Binance imports

Free plan: Up to 30,000 transactions. No credit card required.

Pro plan: $189/year for up to 100,000 transactions with full reporting.

Save more. Do less.

Get started at netrunner.tax →

Disclaimer: This information is for general educational purposes only. It should not be taken as constituting professional advice from Netrunner. You should consider seeking independent legal, financial, or taxation advice to check how this information relates to your unique circumstances.

Updated on: 04/03/2026