Laos

Laos has no specific cryptocurrency regulation.

Overview

Status	Restricted
Risk Score	55/100 (High Risk)
Region	southeast asia
Currency	LAK

Tax Information

Capital Gains (Personal)	Unclear
Capital Gains (Corporate)	20% CIT
VAT on Crypto	No
Staking Tax	Unclear
Airdrop Tax	Unclear

No crypto-specific tax guidance available.

Licensing & Registration

Required	Yes
Regulator	BOL + MTC
Framework	BOL Decision No. 777.BOL (December 15, 2021) — Trial Operation of Cryptocurrency Trading Platform; MTC Decision No. 888.MTC (November 9, 2021) — Experimenting with Digital Asset Transactions. Government plans to phase out mining licenses by Q1 2026.
Ease	very_complex

Enforcement Activity

Level: Low

No detailed enforcement information available

AML / KYC

KYC Required	Yes
Travel Rule	No
FATF Member	No
FATF Status	grey_list
FATF Body	APG
Suspicious-Activity Reporting	No

DeFi, Stablecoins & NFTs

Status: Restricted

Stablecoins

Status: Restricted

NFTs

Status: unregulated

Mining

Legal	Yes
Electricity Cost	$0.045/kWh
Renewable Energy	70%
Infrastructure	fair

Mining is restricted to select licensed companies; general public mining is prohibited. Electricity costs are low and a high share of renewables supports sustainable mining operations.

Geopolitical Risk

Stability	moderate
Sanctions	No
Corruption Index	34/100
Banking Access	restricted

Risk Factors

capital controls
limited banking access
regulatory uncertainty
FATF grey list
crypto mining wind-down

Corruption index updated to 34 (CPI 2025, TI). FATF grey-listed February 2025, still active. No country-level sanctions.

Sources

https://www.bol.gov.la

Frequently Asked Questions

Is cryptocurrency legal in Laos?

Laos has no specific cryptocurrency regulation.

What is the FATF status of Laos?

Laos is classified by FATF as: grey_list.

Are VASPs licensed in Laos?

Yes, licensing is required for VASPs.

What is the AML/KYC regime in Laos?

KYC is mandatory for crypto businesses.

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Last reviewed: 2026-06-01 · Data source: Soken Crypto Legal Map

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