Less than two years after officially adopting Bitcoin as legal tender, Próspera, a special economic zone located in Roatan, Honduras, has now formally recognized Bitcoin as a unit of account. This recognition allows Bitcoin to be used as a measure of the market value of goods and services within the zone.
Jorge Colindres, the acting manager and tax commissioner of Próspera Zone for Employment and Economic Development (ZEDE), initiated this development on January 5.
In a post on January 7 on X (formerly Twitter), Colindres stated that the primary aim was to provide greater financial freedom to individuals and businesses operating within the Próspera area. This means that Bitcoin can now serve as a monetary unit for assessing the market value of various goods and services in the Próspera zone.
However, Colindres noted that they were currently unable to implement the “Final BTC Tax Payment Procedure” due to technological limitations with their eGovernance system and some external regulatory issues. Consequently, Bitcoin-electing entities will determine their tax liabilities with reference to Bitcoin for internal accounting purposes but report these liabilities to Próspera ZEDE in United States dollars or the Honduras lempira until these issues are resolved. Eventually, entities will report and pay their tax liabilities to Próspera ZEDE in Bitcoin.
Entities interested in adopting Bitcoin as their unit of account must submit a notice to Próspera’s tax commission within 30 days of the relevant tax period. Colindres mentioned that the notice should specify an approved cryptocurrency exchange, such as Coinbase or Kraken.
Próspera ZEDE was launched in May 2020 on the northern island of Roatan. The region made Bitcoin legal tender in April 2022, approximately seven months after El Salvador, its neighboring country, adopted Bitcoin as legal tender across the entire nation in September 2021.
Colindres recently described Próspera ZEDE as one of the “most competitive special regimes” in Latin America, noting that it has attracted over $100 million in investments during its three-year existence and has generated more than 3,000 jobs throughout the country.
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