Near Protocol: staking, Aurora and taxation in Spain

Near Protocol is a high-speed blockchain that uses a sharding (Nightshade) approach to scale. It has a friendly account model (myname.near instead of 0x...) and Aurora, its EVM-compatible solution. Less popular in Spain than Ethereum or Solana, but with an active community.

NEAR Staking: validators and delegators

Near uses Delegated Proof of Stake:

• Validators: Nodes that validate the network operate. They require a minimum stake (~10,000 NEAR in 2025).
• Delegators: Anyone can delegate NEAR to a validator and receive part of their rewards.

Staking process:

1. Select a validator at near.org/staking.
2. Delegate NEAR.
3. Rewards accumulate automatically (auto-compound by default).

Taxation:

• Auto-compound rewards raise the same question as in other protocols: is there a taxable event in each auto-compound even if you do not make an active claim?
• Conservative criterion: Declare the rewards that accumulate as return on capital in the year in which they are generated.
• Registration Tool: NearBlocks.io shows staking reward history.

Unstaking and waiting period

When delegating NEAR, there is a waiting period of ~52-65 hours (2-3 epochs of ~12 hours + release time). There is no accumulation of rewards during unbonding.

• The unlocking itself does not generate a tax event.

Aurora: Near's EVM

Aurora is an EVM environment built on Near that allows you to run Ethereum smart contracts on Near:

• Gas is paid in ETH (yes, in ETH, not in NEAR).
• You can use MetaMask with Aurora by adding the network.
• Aurora DeFi projects (Trisolaris DEX, Bastion lending) follow the same taxation as their Ethereum equivalents.

Bridges Near ↔ Aurora ↔ Ethereum:
You can move assets between Near, Aurora and Ethereum via the Rainbow Bridge (Near official):

• Same treatment as any bridge: if the ownership does not change, it is probably not a transfer.
• But it records all operations.

Airdrops in the Near ecosystem

Several Near ecosystem projects have airdropped to NEAR stakers or active users:

• Same taxation as general airdrops: capital gain upon receipt.
• Market price at the time of receipt.

NameSky and the .near domain

Near accounts have human-readable names (example: "miruta.near"). This is similar to an ENS on Ethereum:

• Buying a .near name: cost in NEAR → possible loss (probably no gain from the name itself because you are not transmitting it when purchasing it, it is a service).
• Sell a .near name: capital gain on the price paid → just like an NFT.

Ref Finance: Near's premier DEX

Ref Finance is the main DEX of the Near ecosystem:

• Swaps: Each swap is a transmission → gain/loss.
• Liquidity pools: Deposit can be transmission, rewards are movable capital.
• Farming: Reward tokens → return on capital.

Registration tools for Near

• NearBlocks.io: Near's main browser. Export transaction history.
• NearVault.dev: Shows detailed staking and rewards history.
• Koinly: Nearby support. Import wallet history.
• NEAR Wallet / MyNear.wallet: Web wallets with integrated history.

Updated: April 2026 | Fiscal year: 2025