Is crypto mining legal in Australia?

Crypto mining is legal in Australia, and as of November 2026 there is no mining licence or ban. Australia's crypto rules are aimed at businesses that exchange, transfer or hold crypto for customers, which are set out in how crypto is regulated in Australia. For a miner, the main legal questions are tax, power and using equipment you are entitled to use.

Is bitcoin mining legal in Australia?

Yes. AUSTRAC's list of virtual asset designated services covers exchanging crypto for money or for other crypto, safekeeping crypto for others, transferring it for customers, and some services linked to token sales. Mining and validating blocks are not on that list. A miner who only mines and holds their own coins is therefore not providing a service that triggers AUSTRAC registration, though selling coins through an exchange still means dealing with a registered business.

Australia also has commercial bitcoin mining. In June 2022, CoinDesk reported that Australian miner Mawson Infrastructure Group swapped about 1,975 mining rigs for a 33% stake in Tasmania Data Infrastructure, a site described as running on 100% renewable power, with room to host up to 10MW of Mawson's own machines.

When is crypto mining illegal in Australia?

Mining becomes a problem when the computing power is not yours. In May 2019 the Australian Federal Police charged a 33-year-old IT contractor in Sydney with two Criminal Code offences after he allegedly changed government computer systems to mine crypto worth over AU$9,000, CoinDesk reported. The charges were unauthorised modification of data to cause impairment and unauthorised modification of restricted data, carrying maximum penalties of 10 and 2 years in prison. This kind of hidden mining is explained in what is cryptojacking.

How does crypto mining tax work in Australia?

The ATO says that if you mine as a business, alone or by providing services to a mining pool, the crypto you receive is trading stock. Businesses must value trading stock at the start and end of each income year, and sale proceeds are generally ordinary income.

Not every miner is running a business. The ATO says a business is usually run for commercial reasons, with an intention to make a profit, in an organised way, and with repeated activity. Size alone does not decide it. Crypto held as an investment instead falls under capital gains tax when it is disposed of, as covered in how crypto is taxed in Australia.

GST can also apply. The ATO says supplying mining services to a pool operator located in Australia is a taxable supply, while services to a pool operator outside Australia are GST-free. A GST-registered miner can generally claim credits on equipment and energy costs linked to those services. Other countries' approaches are compared in how is crypto mining taxed.

Rules differ by country and change often. Check the regulator, the tax authority or a qualified professional for your own situation.