Positive Development for Cryptocurrencies in the US: IRS Improves Tax Regulation

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has introduced an updated draft of the tax form known as 1099-DA, which will be used by crypto brokers and investors to report income from certain transactions.

The revised form is scheduled to come into effect in 2026.

Currently, cryptocurrency investors who use intermediaries, primarily centralized exchanges like Coinbase and Kraken, will receive a 1099-DA to report taxable crypto sales and exchanges to the IRS. The latest version of the form, announced Friday, represents a significant improvement from the initial draft released in April.

Notably, the new draft addresses privacy concerns raised in the initial proposal by removing previously included sections for investors to enter their wallet addresses and transaction IDs. Additionally, the requirement to specify the exact time of transactions has been removed, leaving only the date.

The original form also included a box for filers to categorize their intermediary type, with options such as “kiosk operator,” “digital asset payment processor,” and “non-hosted wallet provider.” This classification box has been removed in the updated draft.

Crypto attorney Drew Hinkes, a partner at KL Gates in Miami, praised the updated form, calling it “substantially improved” and less burdensome. “It requires significantly less data reporting” on X, Hinkes said.

*This is not investment advice.