Russia has ordered data centers to report on miners using their services
Russian data centers and hosting providers are required to provide tax authorities with all necessary information about cryptominers using their services.
The tax service's new directive comes as the Russian government prepares to limit the use of computing resources and electricity in the production of digital currencies.
Mining infrastructure operators tasked with reporting miners
All operators of equipment and data processing infrastructure provided to third parties and organizations for cryptocurrency mining in Russia are now required to transfer detailed information about their clients to the Federal Tax Service (FTS).
The new reporting form, along with its specific data points, was approved by the tax authority in an order that came into effect on July 30, the official publication of the Russian legislature, Parliamentary Newspaper, reported on Wednesday. The document notes:
“The Federal Tax Service will know almost everything about miners, from electricity tariffs to the model of their equipment and its operating hours.”
In 2024, Russia recognized the mining of digital currencies such as Bitcoin as a legal business activity. Since November, both legal entities and individual entrepreneurs can engage in mining, subject to registration with the Federal Tax Service.
Registration is not required for individuals using less than 6,000 kWh of electricity per month to power their mining rigs. Data centers and hosting providers are included in a special register of “mining infrastructure operators.”
When registering with the tax authority, miners provide independent information about their activities and equipment. The latest order of the Federal Tax Service, amending the country's tax legislation, establishes the procedure for collecting similar data from companies that lease premises and equipment to miners.
These include data center and mining farm operators, as well as mining hosting services and any platforms that provide computing power to third parties. Failure to provide the required information in full and within the specified timeframe will result in fines and even cancellation of registration.
Russian Tax Service Wants to Know Everything About Miners
The information requested by the Russian government is quite extensive. Mining hotels must inform tax agents about the electricity rates set for their clients, as well as the total volume of electricity consumption for each rate, the business news portal RBC notes in its report.
Hosting providers will be required to indicate the manufacturer, model, and serial number of the mining equipment used by each client. The new form will also require the mining algorithm, maximum computing power, power consumption, and operating hours.
Bitcoin farm operators are required to provide corporate and tax registration numbers of legal entities and entrepreneurs using their services, as well as the full names and passport details of individuals who are their clients.
Each client must provide information about what cryptocurrency they mine and in what volume. If the miner uses a mining pool, the latter must be identified. FNS also requests a link to a page that allows monitoring the operation of mining equipment in real time.
Legalization has led to a mining boom in Russia, but authorities are concerned about the low number of registered miners, estimated at less than a third of all mining operations. Growing energy shortages in some parts of the country have added to the concerns, which have been addressed by restrictions on operations in about a dozen energy-deficient areas.
Earlier in July, President Vladimir Putin justified the measures by stressing that Russia should take a balanced approach to using its resources. Shortly after, the State Duma introduced legislative amendments banning cryptocurrency mining in data centers. The move is expected to save computing power for other applications, such as big data processing and artificial intelligence (AI) development.
Source: cryptonews.net
