Play-to-Earn and GameFi: taxation of tokens and NFTs earned by playing

The Play-to-Earn (P2E) phenomenon exploded with Axie Infinity in 2021. Thousands of players (especially in the Philippines and Latin America) won real money playing blockchain games. But in Spain, any income, even if it comes from a video game, may be subject to taxes.

What is Play-to-Earn?

In classic P2E games:

1. You buy NFTs to play (characters, lands, vehicles...).
2. You play and earn native game tokens (SLP in Axie, SAND in Sandbox...).
3. You sell the earned tokens or NFTs in exchange for real money.

The economic flow is real, therefore it has real tax implications.

Axie Infinity: the most relevant case

Axie Infinity required purchasing 3 Axies (NFTs) to play. The players won:

• SLP (Smooth Love Potion): Battle reward token. It was used to breed new Axies or sold.
• AXS (Axie Infinity Shards): Governance token, earned in tournaments and other mechanisms.

Tax treatment of earned SLP and AXS:

Tokens earned from playing are similar to airdrops or mining. They are income obtained from your activity (playing).

Majority criteria of advisors:

• If you play regularly and organized with the objective of profit → Economic Activity (returns from economic activities). Obligation to register as self-employed.
• If you play occasionally and win small amounts → Equity Gain (general part of personal income tax).
• The line between the two depends on habituality and volume.

Scholarship schemes: special attention!

In Axie Infinity, the "managers" (owners of the Axies) lent their NFTs to "scholars" (players without capital) who played and shared the profits. This scheme is clearly an economic activity for both parties:

• Manager: Return on capital (if the Axies are an investment asset) or economic activity.
• Scholar: Performance of work or economic activity.

If the scholar was in Spain and the manager in the Philippines → remittances in crypto → potential withholding problems at origin.

The Sandbox (SAND) and metaverse

In The Sandbox:

• Buy LAND (virtual land parcels as NFT): Investment. Buying NFTs.
• Sell LAND: Capital gain/loss.
• Earn SAND for activities in the metaverse: Performance of economic activity (if usual) or capital gain.
• Rent LAND: Return on capital.

Gods without copyright: Gods Unchained, Splinterlands

In these blockchain card games:

• Cards are NFTs won in tournaments or purchased.
• Sell cards → capital gain (if occasional) or economic activity (if habitual trader).
• Winning rare cards in tournaments → the value of the card at the time of winning is taxable income.

Gaming NFTs: "creation" criteria

There is a difference between:

1. Buy a gaming NFT and sell it: Transmission → capital gain/loss based on savings.
2. Win an NFT in the game (no initial cost, due to skill): The NFT has a value when you win it → taxable income on a general basis + subsequent sale generates new profit.
3. Create a gaming NFT (as an artist/developer): Economic activity → performance of economic activities.

How to declare P2E income: step by step

1. Identify all tokens/NFTs received as in-game rewards.
2. Value each token at the time of receipt (market price).
3. Classify: Economic activity or capital gain?
4. Accumulates the acquisition cost of the tokens received (to calculate profit when selling).
5. When selling: Sale price − acquisition cost (price when you earned them) = new profit.

Deductible expenses in P2E

If you have economic activity in P2E:

• NFTs purchased to play → amortization or expense in the period.
• Gas commissions from transactions → deductible expense.
• Gaming PC electricity (reasonable proportion) → deductible expense.
• Subscriptions to game analysis tools → deductible expense.

Updated: April 2026 | Fiscal year: 2025