The short answer. In El Salvador, exchanging, holding or transferring digital assets for someone else is a regulated activity: only providers registered with the CNAD, the national digital asset commission, may offer it. Before you move Bitcoin, Ethereum or stablecoins through a provider, look it up in the CNAD’s public registry and check that the service you will use is on its authorization.
Bitcoin-only services are the exception: they are supervised by the Superintendencia del Sistema Financiero under Central Reserve Bank rules.
The law and the regulator
The Digital Assets Issuance Law (Ley de Emisión de Activos Digitales, Decreto 643) was approved on 11 January 2023 and published on 24 January 2023. It created the CNAD, a public-law institution that keeps the registries of issuers, certifiers, service providers and public offerings, and supervises the providers. Under the law, digital assets are not securities. It was reformed in 2023 and 2024.
Which activities need a CNAD registration
Article 19 of the law lists the services that only a registered provider may offer:
- Exchanging digital assets for fiat money or for other digital assets.
- Operating an exchange or trading platform.
- Assessing risk and price, and underwriting issuances.
- Placing digital assets on platforms or wallets.
- Promoting, structuring and managing investment products.
- For third parties: transferring digital assets; safekeeping, custody or administration; receiving and transmitting orders; and executing orders in derivatives.
The rule reaches foreign providers too: a provider not domiciled in El Salvador that actively markets its services to clients in the country counts, and must operate through a Salvadoran company or branch. Offering these services without registration can be fined.
How to check a provider, step by step
- Open the CNAD’s public registry of digital asset service providers (it is also in Spanish).
- Search for the legal entity, not the brand. Registrations are for the local company, often a Salvadoran “S.A. de C.V.”, not for the global name you know.
- Note the registration number and the date.
- Check that the authorized services include what you will actually do: exchange, custody or transfer.
- Look for any status note, such as a suspension.
- Read the provider’s published fees: registered providers must publish all their charges, commissions included.
The registry has grown fast: press reports counted more than 80 authorized providers in August 2026.
Bitcoin after the 2025 reform
Decreto 199 of 29 January 2025 reformed the Bitcoin Law: accepting bitcoin became voluntary, and the Treasury receives taxes only in dollars. Companies that provide bitcoin services are supervised by the Superintendencia del Sistema Financiero under Central Reserve Bank technical rules, and the Central Reserve Bank keeps a public registry of bitcoin service providers.
Stablecoins
The CNAD keeps a separate list of stablecoin issuers. Tether announced in January 2025 that it was moving its headquarters to El Salvador, and a Tether company appears on that list. Whether a specific token is itself an authorized issuance is a separate question: check the CNAD’s list of issuances.
Know-your-customer applies here too
Registered providers must identify every buyer with identity documents. Under the anti-money-laundering law in force since October 2025, digital asset and bitcoin service providers are obligated entities, with due diligence that covers the beneficial owner. The CNAD’s anti-money-laundering guide for providers sets customer due diligence for occasional transactions from US$1,000, and applies the travel rule to transfers of any amount.
Taxes on gains
Article 36 of the Digital Assets Issuance Law exempts from any tax the capital gains on digital assets covered by that law, and Article 5 of the Bitcoin Law, as reformed in 2025, says bitcoin exchanges are not subject to capital gains tax. Cases outside the scope of those laws are less clear; ask a tax adviser. What else is and isn’t taxed.
If you want to become a provider
Registration is done with the CNAD; its own page describes the requirements, the initial fee and a review period of about twenty business days. Intersection Legal coordinates the licensing with counsel who run that path as core practice.
Before you move anything
- The provider is on the CNAD registry, as the legal entity you will contract with.
- The service you need is on its authorization.
- You have read its fees and its custody arrangements.
- You have the documents for the origin of your funds ready.
- For a purchase, the digital assets are converted and the funds held in escrow before anything is signed.
Frequently asked
Is crypto legal in El Salvador?
Yes. Digital asset services are regulated by the Digital Assets Issuance Law and supervised by the CNAD; bitcoin services are supervised by the SSF under Central Reserve Bank rules.
How do I know if a provider is registered?
Look up the provider's legal entity in the CNAD public registry of digital asset service providers, and check that the service you will use is on its authorization.
Do I have to accept or pay in bitcoin in El Salvador?
No. Since the January 2025 reform of the Bitcoin Law, accepting bitcoin is voluntary and taxes are paid in dollars.
Do I pay tax on crypto gains in El Salvador?
Capital gains on digital assets covered by the Digital Assets Issuance Law are exempt, and bitcoin exchanges are not subject to capital gains tax. Cases outside those laws are less clear.
Sources
- Digital Assets Issuance Law, Decreto 643 (2023): cnad.gob.sv
- Unofficial English translation of the law, CNAD: cnad.gob.sv
- CNAD public registry of providers: cnad.gob.sv
- CNAD list of stablecoin issuers: cnad.gob.sv
- CNAD, how to register as a provider: cnad.gob.sv
- Bitcoin Law reform, Decreto 199 (2025): www.asamblea.gob.sv
- Ministry of Finance on taxes in dollars (2025): transparencia.mh.gob.sv
- Central Reserve Bank registry of bitcoin providers: registrobitcoin.bcr.gob.sv
- Anti-money-laundering law, Decreto 426 (2025): www.jurisprudencia.gob.sv
- Forbes Centroamérica, August 2026: forbescentroamerica.com
- CoinDesk on Tether, January 2025: www.coindesk.com
General information, not legal, tax or investment advice. The registry changes every week; check it on the day you transact. Reviewed 25 September 2026.