ma-crypto-tax

Morocco — Taxation & Legal Status of Cryptocurrency (Cryptomonnaie / Crypto-actifs)

This skill explains how cryptocurrency (cryptomonnaie, crypto-actifs, actifs numériques) is treated in Morocco for a self-employed person — both its legal status and the uncertain tax position of any gains.

Read this warning first. As of May 2026 Morocco has no settled crypto tax regime and crypto is not freely legal. The position rests on a 2017 prohibition notice that is still in force and a draft law (projet de loi n°42.25) that has not yet been adopted. Anything in this skill about how gains "might" be taxed is conjecture by analogy, not established law. The correct posture is honesty about the uncertainty and referral to a Moroccan expert-comptable and, on exchange-control questions, to the Office des Changes.

The relevant authorities are Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM) — the central bank, the Office des Changes — the foreign-exchange regulator, the Autorité Marocaine du Marché des Capitaux (AMMC) — the capital-markets regulator, and the Direction Générale des Impôts (DGI) — the tax administration. This skill replies in the user's language and keeps native terms (crypto-actifs, profits de capitaux mobiliers, revenus professionnels, réglementation des changes, Impôt sur le Revenu / IR) explained in context.

1. Quick Reference

Quick Reference

Quick Reference table

Field	Value
Country	Morocco (MA)
Topic	Legal status + (uncertain) tax treatment of cryptocurrency
Legal status	Restricted / unregulated — prohibited as a payment means since the Nov 2017 notice; not legal tender; regulation pending
Authorities	Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM), Office des Changes, AMMC, DGI
Currency	MAD (dirham marocain, DH)
Governing notice	Joint Office des Changes / Bank Al-Maghrib / AMMC communiqué, 20 November 2017 (verify)
Pending reform	Projet de loi n°42.25 on crypto-assets — public consultation Nov 2025; parliamentary review expected 2026; not yet adopted (verify)
Specific crypto tax	None — the Code Général des Impôts (CGI) has no crypto-specific article (verify)
Possible IR treatment of gains	Uncertain — by analogy either profits de capitaux mobiliers (occasional disposal) or revenus professionnels (habitual / trading activity)
Exchange control	Crypto transactions treated as an infraction à la réglementation des changes — sanctions/fines possible (verify)
Quality tier	Research-verified — pending sign-off by a Moroccan accountant (expert-comptable)
Skill version	1.0

Conservative defaults

When the facts are thin, default to the safest, most honest position:

• Default = "not a settled regime." Never tell a user there is a clear crypto tax rate or a clear legal pathway. There is not, as of May 2026.
• Default to disclosure, not silence. If a Moroccan tax resident has realised crypto gains, the conservative position is that worldwide income is in principle reportable under the IR even where the asset class is unregulated — but the classification and rate are unsettled, so route to an expert-comptable. Non-declaration is not advice this skill will give.
• Default to "treat exchange-control rules as binding." Never suggest moving funds or crypto across borders in a way that bypasses approved intermediaries (intermédiaires agréés) — the Office des Changes treats this as an infraction.
• Default to "verify the draft law's status." Law 42.25 was not adopted as of the last verification. Re-check BAM, the AMMC, the SGG (Bulletin Officiel), and the DGI before relying on any "new regime."
• Default to referral. This is YMYL, high-risk, and unsettled. Escalate to a Moroccan expert-comptable and, for FX questions, the Office des Changes.

2. Legal & Regulatory Status

2.1 The 2017 prohibition notice (the status quo)

• 2017 prohibition notice content — On 20 November 2017 (verify) the Office des Changes, together with Bank Al-Maghrib and the AMMC (Autorité Marocaine du Marché des Capitaux), issued a public communiqué warning against the use of monnaies virtuelles (virtual currencies). The key points, as widely reported: - Transactions carried out via virtual currencies constitute an infraction à la réglementation des changes (a breach of foreign-exchange regulations), subject to the sanctions and fines provided for by law. - Financial transactions with foreign countries must go through approved intermediaries (intermédiaires agréés) in currencies quoted by Bank Al-Maghrib — crypto is not such a currency. - Virtual currencies are described as an unregulated, opaque, highly volatile payment system, not backed by any financial institution and devoid of protection for users. - The trigger was a Moroccan company announcing it would accept Bitcoin; the authorities responded by declaring the practice unauthorised in Morocco. The practical effect: holding, buying, selling, or paying with crypto is not expressly criminalised as mere possession, but using it — especially for cross-border value transfer — is treated as a regulatory breach. There is no licensing, no consumer protection, and no legal-tender status. This is best described to the user as "restricted / unregulated," not a clean "legal" or a clean "banned." (Joint Office des Changes / Bank Al-Maghrib / AMMC communiqué, 20 November 2017 (verify))

Reality check. Despite the prohibition, reporting suggests millions of Moroccans hold crypto (figures around 6 million / ~16% of the population are cited — verify, this is journalistic, not official). Widespread use does not change the legal status. Flag this gap to the user.

2.2 The pending draft law (projet de loi n°42.25)

• Draft law 42.25 status — Since around late 2024, the authorities have signalled a change of doctrine toward regulating rather than simply prohibiting crypto. The vehicle is the projet de loi n°42.25 on crypto-assets (verify number and status): - Developed jointly by the Ministère de l'Économie et des Finances, Bank Al-Maghrib, and the AMMC, reportedly inspired by the EU's MiCA regulation and aligned with FATF / BIS / IMF recommendations (verify). - Reportedly opened for public consultation in November 2025, with parliamentary review expected in 2026 and possible adoption around mid-2026 (verify — adoption was NOT confirmed at last check). - Reported design: crypto-assets treated as a distinct financial-asset category (not legal tender, not a payment means); service providers (exchanges, custodians) would be licensed and supervised, with the AMMC overseeing issuers/platforms and Bank Al-Maghrib overseeing stablecoins (including a possible dirham-backed stablecoin) (verify). - A transition period (reported ~18 months) and application decrees (décrets d'application) would set capital, reporting, and AML thresholds (verify). Until this law is adopted and its décrets published in the Bulletin Officiel, the 2017 prohibition remains the governing position. Do not present 42.25 as if it were in force. (Projet de loi n°42.25 (verify))

3. Possible Tax Treatment of Gains (UNCERTAIN)

This entire section is conjecture by analogy. The Code Général des Impôts (CGI) contains no crypto-specific provision as of May 2026 (verify). There is no published, binding DGI rate for crypto. Do not state a rate as settled. Route to an expert-comptable.

If a Moroccan tax resident has realised a gain (sold crypto for fiat, swapped one crypto for another, or paid for goods with crypto), the question is which existing IR category, if any, the DGI would apply. The two analogies most often discussed:

3.1 Occasional disposal → profits de capitaux mobiliers

• Occasional disposal analogy — If the activity looks like occasional investment (a private individual buys and later sells), the closest analogy is profits de capitaux mobiliers (profits from the disposal of movable capital / movable property) under the IR — the category used for securities and shares. Commentators note the CGI taxes gains on valeurs mobilières but is silent on crypto, so applying this category to crypto is an analogy, not a rule. Any rate (e.g., the securities-type rates) would be borrowed, not crypto-specific — verify; do not assert. (unsure - no official CGI citation given)

3.2 Habitual activity → revenus professionnels

• Habitual activity analogy — If the activity is habitual, organised, and speculative (frequent trading, mining as a business, running it like a profession), the DGI could instead treat it as revenus professionnels (business / professional income) taxed on net profit through the progressive IR scale, with the cotisation minimale and bookkeeping obligations that implies. For how professional income is computed, see ma-income-tax. Whether a given pattern crosses into "habitual" is a facts-and-circumstances judgement for the reviewer — do not decide it mechanically. (see ma-income-tax)

3.3 What this skill will and will not say

• It will explain that realised gains are, in principle, within the scope of income reporting for a resident, even for an unregulated asset.
• It will lay out the two competing classifications and that the rate is unsettled.
• It will not quote a single "crypto tax rate" as Moroccan law.
• It will not help structure a non-declaration.
• It will not opine on whether the activity is "occasional" vs "habitual" without the user's facts and an expert-comptable's confirmation.

Caution on aggregator figures. Some web sources cite a "2022 DGI guidance treating crypto as an intangible asset taxed at 20%," and others a "planned 15–30% rate." These are not reliably confirmed against the CGI or an official DGI circular and must be treated as unverified. Do not present them as the rule. List them only as claims to verify.

4. Exchange-Control Implications (Office des Changes)

• Exchange control implications — Morocco operates a regime of exchange control (réglementation des changes). This is often the sharper legal risk than tax: - Under the 2017 notice, crypto transactions — especially cross-border ones — are treated as an infraction à la réglementation des changes, exposing the user to administrative sanctions and fines (verify scale). - Lawful cross-border financial transactions must use intermédiaires agréés (approved banks/intermediaries) and currencies quoted by Bank Al-Maghrib. Crypto is neither. - Sending dirhams abroad to buy crypto, repatriating crypto proceeds, or using crypto to move value across the border can all fall foul of these rules. - The Office des Changes has reportedly increased scrutiny of crypto flows as usage has grown (verify). This skill never advises a user to bypass exchange controls. If the user asks how to move crypto in or out of Morocco outside approved channels, decline and refer them to the Office des Changes and an expert-comptable. (2017 notice (Office des Changes / BAM / AMMC))

5. Risk Flags

Surface these prominently in any answer — do not bury them:

• Unsettled regime. No crypto-specific tax law and no clean legal status. Any tax treatment is analogy, not rule.
• Active prohibition. The 2017 notice is still in force. Crypto is not authorised as a payment means and is not legal tender.
• Exchange-control exposure. Cross-border crypto activity may be an infraction à la réglementation des changes with fines/sanctions.
• Moving target. Law 42.25 could change everything — or could stall. Verify its current status (BAM, AMMC, DGI, Bulletin Officiel) before relying on anything. Décrets d'application will carry the operative detail.
• Unreliable secondary figures. Rates floating around the web (20%, 15–30%) are unverified. Do not repeat them as fact.
• Residency & double-tax not covered here. Treaty/residency questions are out of scope — refer out.
• YMYL + high risk. This affects the user's money and legal exposure. Always route to a Moroccan expert-comptable and, for FX, the Office des Changes.

6. Reference

Verify every figure, date, and classification before use. Primary > secondary.

• Office des Changes — oc.gov.ma — the 2017 communiqué on monnaies virtuelles and any updated warnings; exchange-control rules and sanctions.
• Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM) — bkam.ma — joint 2017 warning; statements on the crypto-asset framework and stablecoins; status of the reform.
• AMMC (Autorité Marocaine du Marché des Capitaux) — ammc.ma — supervisory role under the draft framework.
• Direction Générale des Impôts (DGI) — tax.gov.ma — the Code Général des Impôts (CGI); confirm there is (or is not) any crypto-specific provision or circular; categories profits de capitaux mobiliers and revenus professionnels.
• Secrétariat Général du Gouvernement (SGG) / Bulletin Officiel — to confirm whether projet de loi n°42.25 and its décrets d'application have been adopted and published.
• PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries — Morocco — for the general IR framework and any note on crypto (verify whether PwC has yet added a crypto section).
• Companion skills: ma-income-tax (professional income / IR computation), morocco-vat (TVA), ma-bookkeeping (records).

PROHIBITIONS

• Prohibitions list — - Do NOT assert that Morocco has a settled crypto tax regime or quote a single crypto tax rate as law — there is none confirmed as of May 2026. - Do NOT state that crypto is "legal in Morocco" without the 2017 prohibition / unregulated caveat; equally do not say it is fully "banned" — describe it as restricted / unregulated. - Do NOT present projet de loi n°42.25 as if it were in force — it was not adopted at last verification; always flag "verify status." - Do NOT repeat secondary-source rates (e.g., 20%, 15–30%) as established Moroccan law — flag them as unverified. - Do NOT advise, suggest, or help a user breach the réglementation des changes (e.g., moving crypto/funds across the border outside approved intermediaries) — refer to the Office des Changes. - Do NOT advise non-declaration of realised gains or help structure concealment. - Do NOT decide whether the activity is "occasional" vs "habitual" for the user — that is a reviewer judgement on the user's facts. - Do NOT give residency, treaty, or AML opinions under this skill — route out. - Do NOT issue any position as final without Moroccan expert-comptable sign-off.

Disclaimer

This skill is research-verified against public sources — the Office des Changes (oc.gov.ma), Bank Al-Maghrib (bkam.ma), the AMMC, the DGI (tax.gov.ma) and PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries (Morocco), plus 2025–2026 reporting on projet de loi n°42.25 — as of May 2026. It is YMYL, high-risk content covering an unsettled area of law and is pending sign-off by a Moroccan accountant (expert-comptable). There is no settled crypto tax regime in Morocco; everything about how gains might be taxed is analogy, not established law, and the legal status rests on a 2017 prohibition notice with a draft law still pending. Dates, the status of Law 42.25, classifications, and any rate must be re-verified against the official authorities before use. Nothing here is a substitute for advice from a licensed Moroccan expert-comptable, the DGI, or the Office des Changes. Part of openaccountants.com — open-source tax skills for the self-employed.