How to use it
- Enter the reward tokens you receive each month and how many months.
- Enter the token's CAD value when the first and last rewards arrive (or the same value for both).
- Enter a later sale price to see the capital gain or loss on the reward tokens.
- Enter your marginal tax rate for a rough tax estimate.
What CRA says, and where it stops
CRA's page on mining and staking (modified November 10, 2025) says rewards from staking crypto-assets on a centralized crypto-asset exchange platform will generally be income at the time they are credited to your account on the platform. That is the only specific staking guidance we found on CRA's crypto pages as of October 30, 2026.
It does not address staking from your own wallet, delegating to a validator on-chain, liquid-staking tokens, or whether staking is a business or property income in your case. CRA's crypto landing page says it updates its webpages as developments emerge. Until it says more, many people apply the same logic (income at fair market value when received) to other staking, but that is an interpretation, not published guidance.
Worked example
With the default inputs (illustrative), 0.8 reward tokens arrive each month for 12 months while the token's value rises evenly from $30 to $40. The fair market values at receipt add up to $336 of income, and the 9.6 reward tokens get a cost base of $35 each, the average of the values at receipt.
If all 9.6 tokens are later sold at $45, proceeds are $432 and the capital gain is $96. At a 30% marginal rate, tax on the income is about $100.80 and tax on the gain about $14.40 (half the gain included), roughly $115.20 in total. If the price falls instead, the sale produces a capital loss even though the income was already taxed at the higher value.
| Event | When | Amount | Typical treatment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reward credited | Each month | $336 total | Income at fair market value |
| Reward tokens sold | Later | $96 gain | Capital gain, one-half included (if capital) |
The cost base of reward tokens
CRA's pages don't spell out the cost base of staking rewards. The usual approach is that an amount included in income becomes the cost of what you received, so the reward tokens join your pool at their fair market value. That is what this calculator and the ACB tracker assume. If you hold the same token from purchases, the rewards are averaged into the same pool.
Practical record keeping
Rewards often arrive daily or even per block. Keep the platform's reward history export, and for on-chain rewards record the date, amount and the CAD value source you used. Consistency matters more than precision to the second: pick a reasonable, documented valuation method and use it every time.
Commission taken by a validator reduces the rewards you receive; you generally record what you actually receive. The staking rewards calculator shows the reward stream net of commission and lockups.