NFT Tax Calculator
Marketplace fees and creator royalties come out before you see the money — but you are still taxed on them. Unless your NFT falls in a narrow carve-out.
What the NFT tax calculator does
An NFT tax calculator shows what an NFT sale leaves after tax. Most NFTs are virtual digital assets taxed at a flat 30%, with marketplace fees and creator royalties giving no relief at all. A narrow CBDT carve-out for tangible-backed NFTs changes everything.
Not every NFT is a virtual digital asset — and the difference is about four times the tax
Section 2(47A)(b) sweeps non-fungible tokens into the VDA definition, which would put every NFT on the flat 30% with nothing deductible. But CBDT Notification 75/2022, 30 June 2022 carves out an NFT whose transfer moves ownership of an underlying tangible asset, where that transfer of ownership is legally enforceable. Both conditions, or neither counts.
A token pointing at a painting is not the painting. Art, profile pictures and collectibles are virtual digital assets, which is why this page starts there. Whether your token clears the carve-out is a question about its legal documentation, not about arithmetic — this page prices both answers and takes no view on which is yours.
A statement of what the section and the notification say, not a computation on your figures. An estimate on the transactions available to us, not a tax computation or filing advice. Confirm the position with a qualified tax adviser before relying on it.
Your inputs
Which kind of NFT is it?
The second only applies where an underlying physical asset changes hands and that transfer is legally enforceable. Almost no art or collectible NFT qualifies.
What you paid for it — the only thing section 115BBH lets you deduct.
The headline price, before the marketplace and the creator take theirs.
The platform's commission on the sale.
Enforced by the contract on every resale, and paid by you as the seller. It is often the largest single cost here.
Irrelevant as a virtual digital asset — there is no holding period distinction at all.
Your income tax slab
Irrelevant here — section 115BBH is a flat rate outside the slab system.
Which tax regime are you on?
No deduction is available under either, so this changes nothing.
What you actually made, after everyone took their cut
₹65,000
The sale was ₹3,00,000, but ₹30,000 went to the marketplace and the creator before you saw any of it. You owe ₹31,200.
- Sale price
- ₹3,00,000
- Marketplace fee (2.5%)
- − ₹7,500
- Creator royalty (7.5%)
- − ₹22,500
- So what actually reached you
- ₹2,70,000
- Gas and minting
- − ₹5,000
- What it cost you
- − ₹2,00,000
- What you actually made
- ₹65,000
- Tax at 31.2%
- − ₹31,200
- Left in your hand
- ₹33,800
NFTs are unregulated in India, are not covered by any investor protection scheme, and can become unsellable. GrowIQ Capital is a mutual fund distributor, does not deal in NFTs and does not recommend them. An estimate on the transactions available to us, not a tax computation or filing advice. Confirm the position with a qualified tax adviser before relying on it.
₹9,360 of your bill is tax on money that never reached you
The marketplace fee and the creator royalty are taken out of the sale before anything lands in your wallet. Section 115BBH(2)(a) allows what you paid for it and nothing else, so neither reduces your taxable gain by a rupee. You are taxed on the ₹3,00,000 headline price, not on the ₹2,70,000 you received.
Taken before you saw it
₹30,000
10% of the sale, gone to the platform and the creator.
Taxed on it anyway
₹9,360
The 31.2% applied to money that never arrived.
Share of your whole bill
30%
Of the tax you owe on this sale.
An estimate on the transactions available to us, not a tax computation or filing advice. Confirm the position with a qualified tax adviser before relying on it.
The same sale, both ways
Identical NFT, identical price, identical day. The only thing that differs is whether the carve-out applies — which turns on the legal documentation behind the token rather than on anything in these numbers.
| As a VDA (you) | Carved out | |
|---|---|---|
| Taxed on a gain of | ₹1,00,000 | ₹65,000 |
| At a rate of | 31.2% | 12.5% |
| Holding period matters | No | Yes, 24 months |
| Fees deductible | No | Yes |
| Losses usable | No | Yes |
| 1% is held back | Yes | No |
| Tax due | ₹31,200 | ₹8,125 |
| Left in your hand | ₹33,800 | ₹56,875 |
Being a virtual digital asset costs ₹23,075 on this sale — the same NFT, the same price, the same day. Two things cause it and both matter: the rate is 31.2% against 12.5%, and it is charged on the full ₹1,00,000 rather than on the ₹65,000 left after costs come off. Cutting the rate alone would not close the gap.
An estimate on the transactions available to us, not a tax computation or filing advice. Confirm the position with a qualified tax adviser before relying on it.
1% TDS, because this is a virtual digital asset
Section 194S withholds 1% of the sale value once annual sales pass ₹50,000 — of the value, not the profit, so it is taken even on a losing sale. On this sale that is ₹3,000, creditable against the ₹31,200 you owe. An NFT that falls in the carve-out is not a VDA, so 194S does not reach it at all.
An estimate on the transactions available to us, not a tax computation or filing advice. Confirm the position with a qualified tax adviser before relying on it.
What this assumes
- You are selling on, not minting. A creator’s first sale may be business or professional income rather than a transfer of a capital asset — slab rates with expenses deductible, instead of the flat 30%. Royalties you later receive on resales are income in your hands, not a transfer by you. Neither is modelled here, and both are genuinely unsettled.
- The carve-out is narrow and untested. CBDT Notification 75/2022, 30 June 2022 requires an underlying tangible asset AND a legally enforceable transfer of its ownership. This page prices both branches; it cannot tell you which one your token is on, and neither can anyone who has not read its documentation.
- One sale, in isolation. As a VDA, a loss on this NFT cannot be used to reduce a gain on another — see the crypto calculator for what that does across a portfolio. Under the carve-out it can be, and this page does not model the rest of your year either way.
- Gas is treated as a cost, not part of acquisition. Under VDA treatment it gets no relief regardless. Under the carve-out it is taken here as reducing the gain, which is the ordinary position for a cost of acquisition or transfer.
- Surcharge is excluded; the 4% cess is included in both rates. Airdropped and gifted NFTs have their own treatment and are not modelled.
No returns are assured or guaranteed. Any illustration of returns is a mathematical projection, not a promise. NFTs are not regulated in India, are not covered by any investor protection scheme, can become entirely unsellable, and have no intrinsic value. GrowIQ Capital is a mutual fund distributor, does not deal in or recommend NFTs, and does not provide tax advice — this is arithmetic on the figures you entered, for discussion with a qualified tax adviser.
How the NFT tax calculation works
As a VDA: (sale price − cost) × 31.2%, fees ignored. Carved out: (proceeds − fees − cost) × 12.5% after 24 months.
Section 2(47A)(b) includes non-fungible tokens in the definition of a virtual digital asset, which would put every NFT on section 115BBH — a flat 30% plus cess, losses forfeited, and no deduction but the cost of acquisition. CBDT Notification 75/2022 of 30 June 2022 carves out an NFT whose transfer results in the transfer of ownership of an underlying TANGIBLE asset where that transfer is legally enforceable. Both conditions are required, and almost no art, profile-picture or collectible NFT meets them, so most NFTs are virtual digital assets. Where the carve-out does apply the NFT is an ordinary capital asset instead: 12.5% after twenty-four months or slab rate below, losses that can be set off and carried forward, and transfer expenses that actually reduce the gain. On identical numbers that fork changes the bill by roughly four times. The second thing that separates NFTs from crypto is the size of the costs. A marketplace commission plus a creator royalty enforced by the contract on every resale commonly reaches a tenth of the sale price, and both are taken out before the seller receives anything — yet under 115BBH neither reduces the taxable gain, because the section allows the cost of acquisition and nothing else. The seller is therefore taxed on money that never reached them, and on a thin margin the entire tax bill can consist of that: buy at ₹3 lakh, sell at ₹3.2 lakh with a 2.5% fee and a 7.5% royalty, and ₹32,000 of costs turn a ₹20,000 headline gain into a ₹17,000 real loss while ₹6,240 of tax still falls due. Section 194S also withholds 1% of the sale value on a VDA, including on a losing sale, and does not reach a carved-out NFT at all.
Frequently asked questions
Are NFTs taxed as virtual digital assets in India?
Most are. Section 2(47A)(b) includes non-fungible tokens in the definition, so art, profile-picture and collectible NFTs take the section 115BBH treatment: a flat 30% plus cess, losses forfeited entirely, and no deduction except the cost of acquisition. But CBDT Notification 75/2022 excludes an NFT whose transfer moves ownership of an underlying tangible asset where that transfer is legally enforceable — and such an NFT is not a VDA at all.
What is the tangible-asset carve-out for NFTs?
Two conditions, both required: there must be an underlying tangible asset, and the transfer of its ownership must be legally enforceable. A token pointing at a painting is not the painting; a token that gestures at a real-world object without transferring title anybody could enforce in court does not qualify. Where it does apply the NFT is an ordinary capital asset — 12.5% after twenty-four months, losses that can be set off, and transfer expenses that actually come off the price.
Can I deduct the marketplace fee and creator royalty?
Not if the NFT is a virtual digital asset. Section 115BBH(2)(a) allows the cost of acquisition and nothing else, so the marketplace commission, the creator royalty enforced on resale, and gas fees give no relief — even though all three are taken out of the proceeds before you see a rupee. You are taxed on money that never reached you.
Can I owe tax on an NFT I sold at a loss?
Yes, and on NFTs it happens easily because the fees are large. Buy for ₹3 lakh, sell for ₹3.2 lakh with a 2.5% marketplace fee and a 7.5% royalty, and ₹32,000 of costs turn a ₹20,000 headline gain into a ₹17,000 real loss. As a VDA you still owe ₹6,240 — every rupee of it charged on money you never received. Under the carve-out you would owe nothing.
Does how long I held the NFT matter?
Only if it falls in the carve-out. As a virtual digital asset there is no holding period distinction at all — six months and ten years are taxed identically at 30%. As an ordinary capital asset, more than twenty-four months gets you 12.5% instead of your slab rate, so patience is worth real money on that side of the line and nothing at all on this one.
Is there TDS on NFT sales?
On a virtual digital asset, yes — section 194S withholds 1% of the sale value once annual sales pass ₹50,000, and it applies even when you sell at a loss. An NFT that falls in the tangible-asset carve-out is not a VDA, so 194S does not reach it.
How is an NFT taxed if I created it?
That is a genuinely different and less settled question. A creator’s first sale may be business or professional income rather than a transfer of a capital asset, which would mean slab rates with expenses deductible instead of the flat 30%. Royalties you later receive on secondary sales are income in your hands rather than a transfer by you. This calculator models a holder selling on, not a creator minting — take the creator position to a tax adviser.
GrowIQ Capital provides financial data analytics, market information and educational content. We are not a SEBI-registered Investment Adviser or Research Analyst. Nothing on this platform constitutes investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security. No returns are assured or guaranteed. Any illustration of returns is a mathematical projection, not a promise. Past performance is not indicative of future returns and does not guarantee future results.