Cryptocurrency

Yes, the IRS can tax bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. What you need to know

Yes, the IRS can tax bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. What you need to know Read the full article at CNN.com Even though you can buy things with bitcoin, it’s not the same as cash. At least not in the eyes of the IRS. Virtual currencies are taxed as property, or as an investment, when you sell them. And using […]

By CJ Reichel · April 12, 2021

Read the full article at CNN.com

Even though you can buy things with bitcoin, it’s not the same as cash. At least not in the eyes of the IRS. Virtual currencies are taxed as property, or as an investment, when you sell them. And using them to buy something counts as selling. If you’re paid in bitcoin, on the other hand, that will be treated as taxable income to you. Indeed, almost every transaction may be taxable and should be reported. While bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies may be virtual, they have very real-world tax consequences. If you fail to pay the tax you owe, you will be subject to interest and penalties and, in some circumstances, even criminal prosecution.

So if you couldn’t resist getting in on bitcoin’s wild ride in 2020 — it went up about 680% over the past year and has been trading north of $55,000 recently — let’s hope you kept good records, because you are responsible for preserving documentation for every one of your transactions.

So how will the IRS even know I’ve been using crypto?

In a variety of ways. There is still no legally required third-party reporting of crypto trades and many types of payments. But any business paying more than $600 to a non-employee or paying wages to an employee must report that income to the IRS, said Mark Luscombe, principal federal tax analyst for Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting.

Plus, every federal tax filer at the top of their 1040 form must truthfully answer the question, “At any time during 2020, did you receive, sell, send, exchange, or otherwise acquire any financial interest in any virtual currency?”

But that doesn’t mean the IRS will simply rely on an honor system. “They have the perception that there are many more people engaged in virtual currency transactions than is being reported on returns,” Luscombe said.

So, together with the US Department of Justice, the tax agency is actively seeking compliance in a few ways. It has started a “virtual currency compliance campaign” that will include public outreach but also “examinations.” That can mean audits. In addition, the IRS sent letters in the summer of 2019 to 10,000 people alerting them to their tax obligations regarding virtual currencies and urging them to review and amend past returns if they owe back taxes, interest and penalties. How did it get the names of those 10,000 people? “hrough various ongoing IRS compliance efforts,” the agency noted. One such effort: The IRS is seeking customer lists from cryptocurrency companies through legal summonses.

“The Department of Justice will continue to work with the IRS to ensure that cryptocurrency owners are paying their fair share of taxes,” the DOJ said in a statement earlier this month.

Read the full article at CNN.com