Is crypto legal in Montenegro? Regulation & rules (2026)

Parliament adopted amendments to the Law on the Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing on 28 February 2025, defining 10 crypto-asset services and introducing the first formal regulatory obligations for CASPs — aligned with FATF Recommendation 15, MONEYVAL, and OECD standards rather than EU MiCA.

Providing crypto-asset services requires registration with the CMA's online CASP registry, not a permit or licence. There are no minimum capital requirements beyond standard company law (€1 for an LLC; €25,000 for a JSC), and the procedure is designed primarily as a transparency and AML/KYC gateway.

On 25 December 2025, the Capital Market Authority issued a 15-page Rulebook on conducting the CASP registry and assessing the reputation of directors, governing-body members, and beneficial owners, completing the operational framework for CASP registration under the AML amendments.

Prime Minister Spajić announced in September 2025 that a dedicated law aligned with EU MiCA would be adopted, and the Finance Ministry launched a public consultation on draft legislation. The government, CMA, and Central Bank of Montenegro (CBCG) are co-drafting the text, with finalization targeted for 2026.

Capital gains from crypto trading are subject to Montenegro's standard 9% flat personal and corporate income tax. Crypto transactions are exempt from VAT. However, the tax authority acknowledged in December 2025 that enforcement is limited pending a standalone digital-assets law, and OTC/cash-settled crypto trading remains a largely unmonitored grey zone.

Balkan Insight reporting (December 2025, March 2026) identified significant unregulated OTC crypto trading via Telegram groups and in-person cash transactions, with millions in flows. Officials were found exploiting asset-declaration gaps; the Global Initiative risk bulletin (May 2025) noted that seizing crime-related virtual assets remains a challenge across the Western Balkans including Montenegro.