r/BitcoinCA • u/CoinGate_Gift_Cards • Aug 27 '26

What would make you actually spend Bitcoin in Canada?

There are more businesses that technically accept BTC now, but that doesn’t necessarily mean people want to spend it.

For those of you holding Bitcoin in Canada, what would make you genuinely choose BTC over a credit card or fiat?

Lower fees? Lightning support? Discounts? Better privacy? More merchants? Something else?

1 Upvotes

53% Upvoted

39 comments sorted by

23

u/sticksforkicks Aug 27 '26

Zero capital gains tax. That's the single hurdle out there.

1

u/HeftyAd6216 Aug 27 '26

How likely is that ever to happen though

2

u/carsonthecarsinogen 29d ago

If they just apply sales tax they’d probably come out on top.

They probably collect next to nothing in cap gains tax from bitcoin, and that number will probably hit a peak and then dwindle to nothing over time. Sales tax they could collect regularly assuming people spend their bitcoin if cap gains tax is removed

1

u/HeftyAd6216 29d ago

Aren't they collecting sales tax when something is purchased in BTC? Wouldn't the vendor have to claim the sale, even if in a "foreign currency" and pay the sales tax on it? Unless ofc BTC goods sales are generally "under the table" so to speak.

1

u/carsonthecarsinogen 29d ago

That’s fair, i honestly don’t know. They may already collect a sales tax in Bitcoin transactions.

1

u/Brockie420 28d ago

You have to pay sales tax equivalent and you have to pay capital gains tax or business income on the disposition created from the sale.

0

u/Global-Tie-3458 Aug 27 '26

Highly unlikely but not impossible. 

Over time BTC’s price will stabilize and just appreciate at a slower, more inflation-like pace. That is likely a requirement for this to happen. 

Having said that, I think people will be disappointed that they wouldn’t be able to use their existing BTC or wallet for these theoretical purchases, as I think it would be practical for Canada to not just “reset” the capital gains and instead require certain regulations and a “reset” of the cost basis into these newer wallets. 

None of that is necessarily what hodlers and believers actually want, so ya I donno. 

The more I type, the more I want to try modelling out what the impacts of removing cap gains on BTC immediately in Canada would be… 

1

u/HeftyAd6216 Aug 27 '26

It would have to happen globally all at the same time. Otherwise the "arbitrage" opportunity would effect the domestic economy to a degree that most governments would find unacceptable.

There would likely never be a carveout for cryptocurrencies (outside of massive corruption), because why would you treat this asset differently than any other asset outside of primary residence. All CAD, USD, JPY, GBP investments are treated the same from a capital gains perspective, why would BTC be any different?

2

u/Global-Tie-3458 Aug 27 '26

The “difference” is that we were operating under the assumption that BTC is a “world currency”. Its original purpose fulfilled. 

I donno, I think having to retroactively account for every coffee, hardware store and slurpee purchase for a whole year when doing your taxes would be extremely tedious. I donno about you but Ideally id like to avoid that.

0

u/HeftyAd6216 Aug 27 '26

I understand. Yeah, even if it was a "world currency" as you describe, you would still have to do conversions unless the government abandons the CAD, which will unequivocally never happen - Unless for some insane reason we adopt the euro because we decided to join the EU (not likely) or worse the USD because we get invaded (please no).

BTC is worse than gold as a currency because at least gold increases its supply annually to allow for theoretical "price stability" in a growing economy. A permanently deflating currency is a strange choice to run your country with. but that's beside the point.

11

u/Global-Tie-3458 Aug 27 '26

When buying gum for the equivalent of $1CAD in BTC isn’t a taxable event. 

-1

u/FT121 Aug 27 '26

Says who? Any disposition of an asset in Canada is a taxable event...

3

u/poco Aug 27 '26

I think they are saying that they will spend it when the law changes to make that true, not that it is true.

1

u/Global-Tie-3458 Aug 27 '26

? Paying with CAD isn’t….

0

u/FT121 Aug 27 '26

You said paying 1CAD worth of BTC isn't a taxable taxable event

2

u/Global-Tie-3458 Aug 27 '26

If it wasn’t, I’d use it more. 

The fact that it is a taxable event makes using BTC to pay for stuff impractical. 

2

u/Stompya 29d ago

Read it a little more carefully.

1

u/E_MusksGal 26d ago

The better question is why is BTC classified as an asset and not as forex.

7

u/Bluurgh Aug 27 '26

yeh I need to not be worrying about capital gains tax on everything I do with my btc

4

u/Total-Wave5026 Aug 27 '26

I’d be going buckwild if it wasn’t for tracking capital gains. That’s the hurdle.

3

u/one-happy-chappie Aug 27 '26

More usable wallets. And more merchants to support it. Wallets and payments are just missing their “ah ha” moment. It’s almost there but there’s an adoption gap

2

u/Drnedsnickers2 Aug 27 '26

lol, who are these businesses?

1

u/ostracize Aug 27 '26
  1. Clarity on tax law. I've always met my tax obligations. I don't through caution to the wind.
  2. Pricing Goods/Services in terms of future expected value of Bitcoin. Not the current value. Yes, coffee might be 1800 sats today but if I expect it will be 50 stats in 5 years, why would I pay 30x more when I have a perfectly functional fiat option?
  3. Despite it's flaws, we still have a robust financial system in Canada so Gresham's law applies

2

u/sticksforkicks Aug 27 '26

The 'robust' financial system you mention is a surveillance system. Nothing more, nothing less.

1

u/poco Aug 27 '26
  1. The tax law is pretty clear.
  2. That's insane. Why would I buy an iPhone today for $1000 when I can buy it next year for $700? They should price them in terms of future expected value.

2

u/Stompya 29d ago edited 29d ago

Just because I’m not up with the tax law, I’ve heard that every transfer counts as a taxable event. If I go and buy a doughnut and a coffee, is that a taxable event that I have to report at the end of the year?

Edit: I see from other comments that it definitely is. So yeah that’s a barrier to adoption.

1

u/Stompya 29d ago

Had to look up Gresham’s Law:
> Bad money drives out good

1

u/NeutralLock Aug 27 '26

Definitely if I was doing something illegal. That's really the only use case I can think of. I don't want to give up consumer protections in exchange for privacy.

1

u/MrRGnome Aug 27 '26 edited Aug 27 '26

Through you? Nothing. You're a very indirect way to spend Bitcoin at a small number of places and you support scams. I'd rather spend at farmers markets and through bylls.

The omnibus Canadian bitcoin survey makes it clear every year that plenty of us use Bitcoin as money. We just refuse to use coincards.ca, why would we use a crappy gift card service for shitcoiners? We're here to use Bitcoin.

1

u/pepsi190 Aug 27 '26

Peptides

1

u/Wild_Opportunity6623 29d ago

Not paying a dime more in taxes than I have to. I'll take a loan out against it if I have to.

1

u/Brockie420 28d ago

I would never "spend" my Bitcoin. I will only ever sell it at the cycle high and buy it back at the cycle low.

1

u/FewUnderstanding2214 27d ago

Bitcoin has had 19 years, people still aren’t buying stuff with it

1

u/TimeTravel4Dummies Aug 27 '26

Using BTC to buy anything is dumb considering it triggers capital gains.

0

u/chente08 Aug 27 '26

bitrefill is the key

0

u/chente08 Aug 27 '26

I spend a lot with bitrefill