Summary
- The Blockchain Association in the US said it has asked Congress to pass crypto-related tax legislation.
- The group said it proposed tax reforms including a small-transaction tax exemption and a reporting system that protects taxpayer privacy.
- The association said taxation should reflect economic substance by adjusting the timing of taxes on mining and staking rewards and wash-sale rules for digital assets.
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The US blockchain industry is urging Congress to overhaul tax rules for cryptocurrencies.
BlockBeats and other outlets reported on October 22 that the Blockchain Association recently sent a letter to House and Senate leaders calling for crypto tax legislation.
About 67 million Americans own and use digital assets, but the current tax code does not reflect changes in the market, the group wrote. The existing framework is creating uncertainty for taxpayers and imposing excessive reporting burdens, it said, encouraging innovation to move overseas.
The association's proposed tax changes include an effective tax exemption for small transactions and a reporting system aimed at protecting taxpayer privacy. It also proposed treating mining and staking rewards as newly created property and taxing them when they are disposed of, rather than when they are received.
The group also said taxes should be based on economic substance rather than technical form. In particular, it said wash-sale rules for digital assets should be designed so they do not disadvantage everyday crypto use. A wash sale prevents taxpayers from using a loss for a tax deduction if they repurchase a substantially identical asset within 30 days before or after selling it at a loss.
JOON HYOUNG LEE
gilson@bloomingbit.ioCrypto Journalist based in Seoul