Belarus Regulates Cryptocurrency with Decree No. 8

In 2017, Belarus introduced a special regime for working with virtual assets through Decree No. 8 of the President of the Republic of Belarus.

The decree legalized tokens and established their status within the regulated digital economy, making it one of the first jurisdictions to give legal meaning to coins and tokens.

Several areas became legal in Belarus after the appearance of Decree No. 8, including cryptocurrency exchanges, operators of digital coin exchange, blockchain and smart contracts, basic operations for users such as mining, purchasing, storing, gifting, and inheritance, and individuals owning a crypto wallet and buying cryptocurrency.

Restrictions differ for individuals and businesses, with individuals not allowed to use coins as a substitute for official payments and required to keep transaction confirmations, while legal entities operate more strictly through regulated platforms, accounting requirements, client identification, and High Technology Park rules.