Does Kraken report to the German tax office?
Providers operating through a company authorised in the EU fall under the reporting obligation of the Crypto-Asset Tax Transparency Act (Kryptowerte-Steuertransparenzgesetz). In Europe, Kraken’s services are provided by the Irish company Payward Europe Solutions Limited, which has held MiCAR authorisation from the Central Bank of Ireland since 25 June 2025. For you, this means: assume that your transactions there are recorded — and make sure your tax return matches them.
Legal position as of: 9 September 2026
What DAC8 means for Kraken users
The reporting obligation is linked to the provider’s category, not to its name. In Europe, Kraken operates through two Irish companies: Payward Europe Solutions Limited, with a MiCAR authorisation for custody, exchange, order execution and transfer, and Payward Global Solutions Limited for operating the trading platform. Both authorisations are dated 25 June 2025 and are listed in the ESMA register; through the EU passport they apply throughout the EEA.
We do not say whether and to what extent Kraken actually reports — that would be a claim about another company that cannot be verified from the outside. What can be said: the category fits, and it is therefore reasonable to assume that the tax authorities know or will know about your transactions.
Which data the Crypto-Asset Tax Transparency Act (Kryptowerte-Steuertransparenzgesetz) covers and from when reports are made is explained on our page on DAC8 and the reporting obligation.
Which exports Kraken itself provides
Kraken offers three export types. The choice between them determines whether the later calculation will be complete — and it is often made wrongly.
The three export types according to Kraken Support, retrieved on 9 September 2026.
| Type | Content |
|---|---|
| Ledgers | deposits, withdrawals, fees and other balance changes over time — the export you need |
| Trades | detailed execution information for margin and non-margin trades |
| Balances | snapshot of balances on a specific date |
- Format either CSV or PDF.
- Trades and Ledgers require a start and end date, Balances only a single date.
- Generation takes anywhere from a few minutes to up to a week.
- Completed exports remain available for 14 days — and, according to Kraken, it sends no email notification when an export is ready.
These last two points interact: if you request an export, receive no notification and only check back after three weeks, you will no longer find it and have to start again — with a waiting time that can once more be up to a week. For a voluntary disclosure (Selbstanzeige) under time pressure, that is a real loss.
Typical pitfalls with Kraken data
Kraken has the best data situation of the major trading venues — the complete history is contained in a single ledger export. The traps therefore lie not in gaps, but in the naming.
“Trades” instead of “Ledgers”
The Trades export looks complete but only contains executions. Deposits and withdrawals, fees and other balance changes are missing. The error only becomes apparent when the holdings are reconciled — at a point when the calculation has already been done.
XBT instead of BTC, X and Z prefixes
The interface has shown BTC since April 2021 — in the history exports, Kraken still uses XBT. In addition, there are codes such as XETH, XLTC, XXRP, as well as ZEUR and ZUSD for currencies. Analysis tools sometimes read such codes as an unknown asset if the mapping is not maintained.
Suffixes on staked holdings
Asset codes with the suffix .S denote holdings staked on-chain, .M opt-in rewards holdings and .P holdings bonded to parachains. XTZ and XTZ.S are the same coin in two states — if they are read as two assets, the result is phantom holdings and exchanges that never took place.
How such raw data can be combined into a robust calculation is described in our article on crypto data preparation and tax reports (in German). The substantive basics are set out in the crypto tax guide.
What to do if earlier years have not been declared
The good news first: with Kraken, obtaining the data is rarely the problem. A ledger export covering the entire period provides the basis, and with it, what was taxable can be determined cleanly for each year.
What matters is the timing, not the data situation. A voluntary disclosure under Section 371 of the German Fiscal Code (AO) can only take effect as long as no ground for exclusion (Sperrgrund) has arisen — and it must be complete, otherwise exemption from punishment is lost entirely, not in part. That is why the calculation comes first and the filing second, never the other way round.
Requirements, grounds for exclusion and the procedure are set out on our page on the crypto voluntary disclosure.
Sources
- Kraken Support: “How to export your account history”, retrieved on 9 September 2026
- Kraken Support: “Bitcoin currency code: XBT vs BTC” and “What is Asset.S and Asset.M?”, retrieved on 9 September 2026
- Central Bank of Ireland, MiCAR authorisation of 25 June 2025; ESMA register of authorised crypto-asset service providers
About the author
Maximilian Klein — Tax Advisor (Steuerberater) & Founder
Tax advisor (Steuerberater) specialising in the reconstruction of crypto transaction data and amended returns covering several years.
Note: This page reflects the legal position as of 9 September 2026 and does not constitute advice on your individual case. Information on products and export options reflects the position as retrieved on 9 September 2026 and may change. Whether and in what form action is required depends on your specific documents and requires them to be reviewed.
Next step
Have your Kraken history prepared
A ledger export covering the entire period is sufficient as a basis. We tell you which years are open and what follows from this.