Is there a crypto bill in India in 2026? Where the law actually stands

No. As of late October 2026, India has not passed a crypto bill. There is no standalone law on crypto governance, disclosure, investor protection or grievance redressal. A parliamentary committee has studied virtual digital assets, concluded its discussions in September 2026 and, as last reported, was waiting for the government's response before preparing its report. Nothing in that process has become law.

What applies today is a patchwork that works in practice: the income tax rules (a flat 30% on VDA gains plus cess, and 1% TDS), and the anti-money-laundering rules that require platforms to register with FIU-IND and verify customers. Buying, holding and selling Bitcoin is not banned. It is taxed and unregulated as an asset. That has been the position for several years, and it is still the position.

Short answer: no crypto bill passed

I have been hearing "the crypto bill is coming" since 2018. Every year there is a headline, a leaked draft, a session of Parliament where it is supposedly listed. And every year, ordinary Indians who hold a little Bitcoin wonder if they are about to wake up to a ban.

So let me be plain about what has and has not happened. No bill on crypto has been passed by Parliament. In February 2026, MP Raghav Chadha put the situation in one line: the government taxes VDAs as if they were legal but regulates them as if they were illegal. Whatever you think of that line, it describes the gap well.

A government discussion paper on crypto has been talked about for a long time. It has been repeatedly delayed, and reports have linked the delay to resistance from the RBI. I would not plan anything around its timing.

The committee's study

The live process is in Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance, chaired by Bhartruhari Mahtab. It has been working on a study titled "A Study on Virtual Digital Assets (VDAs) and Way Forward".

The study had been under discussion for about a year. As reported on 17 September 2026, the committee had concluded its discussions on VDAs and was awaiting the government's response before preparing its report. The Department of Economic Affairs had been scheduled to appear before the committee on 16 September 2026.

Two things to keep in mind about a committee report when it does arrive:

• A committee report makes recommendations. It is advisory. It is not a law and does not change any rule on its own.
• As of this writing, I have not seen confirmation that the final VDA report has been tabled. If you read a headline saying it has, check the date and the source.

RBI vs ICAI

The clearest view of the debate came from what different bodies told the committee.

The RBI, through Deputy Governor Rohit Jain and Executive Director P. Vasudevan, told the committee that VDAs should not be legalised. Its argument was that regulating them would create a "false perception of safety". It also recommended barring banks from exposure to crypto and private stablecoins. This was reported on 3 July 2026.

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India told the same committee the opposite: India needs a comprehensive law for VDAs.

The RBI's presentation also contained a useful number. It put the market at 54 FIU-registered service providers and 39.3 million KYC-verified users holding about ₹20,437 crore. Whatever the policy answer turns out to be, it will apply to tens of millions of people who already use registered platforms.

I have sat across the table from the RBI before. In 2018 its circular cut our company off from banking, and we argued our case all the way to the Supreme Court, which set the circular aside in March 2020. So I take the RBI's view seriously. It has been consistent for more than a decade. But it is one input into a decision that belongs to the government and Parliament.

The SRO proposal

A different report from the same committee, on the Securities Markets Code, was reported on 27 July 2026. It said the exclusion of VDAs from the code left a "regulatory grey area".

It recommended an appropriate regulatory framework for VDAs. Until a law exists, it suggested an interim arrangement: Self-Regulatory Organisations, overseen by a regulator such as the RBI or SEBI. Again, those are recommendations, and advisory.

An SRO is an industry body that sets and enforces standards for its members, under a regulator's supervision. It is a common middle path in other sectors. Whether India uses it for crypto is a decision nobody has made yet.

What applies today

While the debate continues, the rules in force are clear enough to follow.

Tax. Income from transferring a VDA is taxed at a flat 30% under section 115BBH, plus surcharge and cess, with only the cost of acquisition deductible. Losses cannot be set off or carried forward. 1% TDS applies under section 194S (now section 393 of the Income-tax Act, 2025), subject to thresholds. Every sale goes in Schedule VDA. The full rules are in our tax guide.

Reporting. Finance Act 2025 added section 285BAA, requiring prescribed entities to report crypto-asset transactions. CBDT guidance reported on 27 July 2026 set out reporting under the OECD's Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework: from calendar year 2026, platforms report transactions in Form 167. No new tax for you, but your return should match their records.

Anti-money-laundering. Since 7 March 2023, businesses that exchange, transfer or safeguard VDAs for others are reporting entities under the PMLA. They must register with FIU-IND, verify customers, keep records and report suspicious transactions. FIU-IND acts against platforms that serve Indian users without registering. On 9 September 2026 it issued notices to 15 offshore platforms and sought takedowns of their apps and websites.

Courts. In October 2025, the Madras High Court held in an interim order that crypto is property that can be possessed and held in trust, though it is not currency.

Unocoin is registered with FIU-IND as a reporting entity under the PMLA. That is a registration under anti-money-laundering law. It is not an approval of crypto, and no crypto platform in India should claim otherwise.

How to read a "crypto bill" headline

Headlines about a crypto bill tend to blur several different things. Before you react to one, ask which of these it actually is: a recommendation from a committee, a statement by a regulator to that committee, a discussion paper, a bill introduced in Parliament, or a law that has been passed and notified. Only the last one changes the rules you live under. Everything before it is part of the debate.

What to watch

If you hold Bitcoin in India, these are the signals that would actually change something for you:

• The government's response to the committee, and the committee's final VDA report when it is tabled.
• Any bill listed for introduction in Parliament, with its text published.
• A government discussion paper, if and when it is released.
• Changes in the Finance Act to the 30% rate or TDS, which come with the Budget.
• New FIU-IND guidelines or actions against platforms.

Until one of those happens, the honest summary is the same one I would have given you a year ago. Bitcoin is not banned. It is taxed. Platforms must register with FIU-IND. And you should use a registered platform, report every sale, and keep your own records.

I watch this closely because it shapes the company I co-founded. If you want the short version every week, in plain English, sign up for the India Bitcoin Brief. The background on how we got here is on our Supreme Court page.

Keep reading

Sources

• MediaNama, parliamentary panel on VDA regulation (July 2026)
• Outlook Money, committee awaiting government response (17 Sep 2026)
• Cryptopolitan, RBI warns against legal status for crypto (3 July 2026)
• Taxguru, scheme of taxation of VDAs
• Business Today, Budget 2025 VDA changes
• Inc42, CBDT's CARF guidance
• Taxmann, S.O. 1072(E)
• DD News, FIU-IND notices to 15 offshore platforms (9 Sep 2026)
• MediaNama, Madras High Court on crypto as property (Oct 2025)