Direct answer
In El Salvador you can buy bitcoin on international exchanges or from providers registered with the Comisión Nacional de Activos Digitales (CNAD), paying in dollars by transfer, P2P or card. The Asamblea Legislativa amended the Bitcoin Law in January 2025 (Decreto 199): accepting bitcoin became voluntary and limited to private parties, and the State is no longer obliged to accept it. Before you deposit, look the provider up in the CNAD public register and read the current text of the law.
What the regulator publishes
The Bitcoin Law (2021) was amended by Decreto Legislativo N° 199, approved on 29 January 2025 and published in the Diario Oficial the following day, taking effect 90 days later. With the amendment, accepting bitcoin is voluntary and limited to individuals or legal entities with wholly private ownership; the State is no longer obliged to accept it and must pay its obligations in the currency in which they were contracted. Read the decree on the Asamblea Legislativa website for the exact wording of each article.
The Comisión Nacional de Activos Digitales (CNAD), created by the Ley de Emisión de Activos Digitales, maintains a Registro Público de Proveedores de Servicios de Activos Digitales (PSAD) that can be consulted on its website. Each entry shows the company name, the registration number (for example "PSAD-0097"), the registration date and the authorised activities, filterable by category: exchange, safekeeping and custody, structurers, risk and price assessors, and issuance marketers.
Being in the CNAD register means the provider completed a registration procedure, not that the State guarantees your funds or the price of the assets. Check that the entity named in the exchange's terms of use is the same one that appears as registered, and which activities it is authorised for. The Banco Central de Reserva and the Superintendencia del Sistema Financiero issue the regulations under the Bitcoin Law.
Tax authority
The tax authority is the Ministerio de Hacienda, through the Dirección General de Impuestos Internos. The Bitcoin Law provides that exchanges in bitcoin are not subject to capital gains tax, and the 2025 amendment modified the article on taxes; check the current text before assuming an exemption, because the treatment of other crypto-assets and of bitcoin income from services may be different.
In 2021 the Ministerio de Hacienda announced that taxpayers could pay taxes in bitcoin at its collection offices; after the amendment, confirm on the Ministry's portal which payment options remain in force. Keep your transaction history and consult an accountant about your case.
How people usually fund an account
Since the dollar is the currency in use, the usual routes are a USD bank transfer when the exchange offers it for El Salvador, P2P in dollars with a transfer to another user, and Visa or Mastercard cards, normally with higher fees. Which methods you see depends on your account and region; confirm under "Add funds" in the app.
Providers registered with the CNAD may offer direct bitcoin purchases with a local bank deposit; check their fees and registration number before using them and compare the price with the exchange's spot market.
Rules that do not change with the country: always pay and receive from accounts in your own name (platforms reject third-party payments, and a request for one is the first sign of fraud); in a P2P purchase the seller must not release the crypto until the money shows as credited in their bank, and you must not mark the order as paid without having paid; and when you deposit or withdraw crypto, the network you choose must be the same at origin and destination, because a transfer over the wrong network is normally lost for good. Make a small test transaction before moving larger amounts.
Check before you start
- Look the provider up in the CNAD Registro Público de PSAD and check which activities it is authorised for.
- Read Decreto 199 on the Asamblea Legislativa website for the current text of the Bitcoin Law.
- Have a valid DUI or passport ready for identity verification (KYC).
- Confirm whether your account allows USD deposits and withdrawals by local transfer or only P2P and card.
- Check withdrawal limits and network fees before your first deposit.
- Keep your transaction history to support your position with the Ministerio de Hacienda.
- Be wary of "advisers" offering fixed returns in bitcoin and of fake support profiles on social media.
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Official sources
This page summarizes what official bodies publish as of the date shown. It is not legal or tax advice and does not say that any exchange is licensed in this country.
