At 0:00 on September 7, Salvador time, Bitcoin officially became the legal tender of El Salvador. Earlier news, El Salvador’s legislature passed a bill in June this year to establish Bitcoin as legal tender. The bill came into effect at 0:00 on September 7. Bitcoin and the U.S. dollar are used as the legal tender of El Salvador at the same time. Residents of this country can download the government's digital wallet for free, and the downloader will receive $30 worth of Bitcoin during the setup process.
At around 10:00 on June 9, 2021, Nayib Bukele tweeted to officially submit the Bitcoin bill to the Legislative Assembly of the Republic of El Salvador.
The full text of the Bitcoin Act of the Republic of El Salvador is as follows:
considering
I. According to Article 102 of the Constitution of the Republic, the state is obliged to promote and protect private enterprises and to create the necessary conditions for increasing the country’s wealth for the benefit of the broadest population.
II. According to Legislative Decree No. 201, published in Volume 349 of Government Gazette No. 241 on December 22, 2000, the U.S. dollar was adopted as legal tender.
III. Approximately 70% of the population does not have access to traditional financial services.
IV. The state has an obligation to promote the financial inclusion of its citizens in order to better protect their rights.
V. In order to promote the country's economic growth, it is necessary to authorize the circulation of a digital currency whose value fully meets the standards of the free market to increase the country's wealth and benefit the largest number of residents.
VI. Based on the foregoing considerations, it is necessary to issue basic laws to regulate the legal process of Bitcoin.
therefore,
Submit the following law:
Bitcoin Law
1. The purpose of this law is to manage Bitcoin as an unrestricted legal currency. Bitcoin has free power and is not restricted in any transactions that need to be carried out by public or natural or legal persons.
The content mentioned in the previous paragraph does not hinder the application of the Currency Integration Law.
2. The exchange rate between Bitcoin and the U.S. dollar will be freely determined by the market.
3. The price can be denominated in Bitcoin.
4. Taxes can be paid in Bitcoin.
5. Bitcoin transactions will not be subject to capital gains tax, just like any legal tender.
6. For accounting purposes, the U.S. dollar will be used as the reference currency.
7. Every economy, when a person who obtains a product or service offers him a payment in Bitcoin, it must accept it.
8. Without affecting the actions of the private sector, the state should provide alternatives that allow users to conduct transactions with Bitcoin, and if they wish, they can automatically and instantly convert Bitcoin into U.S. dollars. In addition, the state will promote the necessary training and mechanisms to enable people to conduct Bitcoin transactions.
9. The restrictions and operating terms of the automatic real-time exchange program from Bitcoin to U.S. dollars provided by the state will be stipulated in the regulations issued for this purpose.
10. The administrative department will establish the necessary institutional structure to implement this law.
Entry into force and transitional clauses
11. The Central Reserve Bank and the Financial System Supervisory Authority shall issue corresponding regulations within the time limit mentioned in Article 16 of this Law.
12. Due to obvious and well-known facts, those who cannot conduct bitcoin transactions are not within the obligations set forth in Article 7 of this law. The state will promote the necessary training and mechanisms to enable people to obtain Bitcoin transactions.
13. All debts denominated in U.S. dollars that existed before the entry into force of this law can be paid in Bitcoin.
14. Before this law comes into effect, the state will ensure the automatic and instant exchange of bitcoin by establishing a trust fund in the El Salvador Development Bank (BAND). This is necessary for the alternatives provided by the countries mentioned in Article 8.
15. This law will be unique in its application to other laws, and any provisions that conflict with this law will be abolished.
16. This law will take effect ninety days after it is published in the government gazette.
Submitted in the Blue Hall of the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador on June 8, 2021
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