The crypto tax bill 2026 — H.R. 10357 — is a draft bill related to changes to how cryptocurrencies are treated in the US tax code.
What Is the New Crypto Tax Bill?
The legislation, introduced on September 14, covers daily transactions, mining and staking, lending, tax reporting, donations and anti-abuse provisions.
The Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act Explained
The Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act would amend the Internal Revenue Code rather than create a separate regime for digital assets. It would exempt small transactions from recordkeeping and reporting requirements, extend existing tax law for traditional financial assets to digital assets, and clarify the tax implications of digital asset mining and staking rewards.
The legislation would also subject digital assets to wash-sale and constructive-sale rules and create a voluntary disclosure program run by the Treasury for taxpayers wishing to come forward and correct prior crypto tax noncompliance.
Read More: CLARITY Act Failed. Now SEC and CFTC Could Rewrite U.S. Crypto Rules
Why the Crypto Tax Bill Matters Now
The crypto tax bill resulted from several months of drafting by the US Congress of cryptocurrency tax bills. In June, the House Ways and Means Committee held a legislative hearing on bills on the taxation of staking, stablecoins, reporting, lending, donations, and anti-abuse, which were later incorporated into H.R. 10357.
Taxpayers should be encouraged that Congress is interested in making meaningful changes to digital asset tax rules, particularly in making some transactions less punitive and extending anti-abuse rules to cryptocurrency.
| Key Point | Details |
| Bill | H.R. 10357 |
| Main focus | Digital asset taxation and reporting |
| Areas covered | Crypto payments, staking, mining, lending, stablecoins and reporting |
| Committee vote | 38–5 on September 16, 2026 |
| Current status | Advanced by the House Ways and Means Committee |
| Is it law? | No — further congressional action is required |
What Changed in the Latest House Vote?
The House Ways and Means Committee considered the 21st Century Glass-Steagall Act on September 16. The committee adopted the substitute amendment by voice vote, then voted 38-5 to report H.R. 10357, as amended, favorably to the House of Representatives. Two amendments offered by Rep. Lloyd Doggett to the bill were defeated.
For those asking did the crypto tax bill pass, the answer is no: this was a committee vote, not final passage by the House. The amended crypto tax bill passed out of Ways and Means, meaning Congress will have to take further action.
What Would the Crypto Tax Bill Change?
As for what does the crypto tax bill change, the new crypto tax bill would amend parts of the Internal Revenue Code covering small transactions, mining and staking, accounting, reporting, and anti-abuse provisions.
New Tax Rules for Bitcoin and Other Digital Assets
The bill would also create greater parity between digital assets and traditional financial instruments by allowing qualifying dealers and traders to use mark-to-market accounting and applying previously established safe harbors to digital assets.
Additionally, the crypto tax changes would apply wash-sale and constructive-sale rules to covered digital assets to limit certain tax-loss and tax-deferral strategies.
How the Bill Would Treat Crypto Transactions
One such change is based on everyday small transactions, where revenue proposed the introduction of some relief to reduce the need for taxpayers to calculate and report any gains or losses on low-value transactions using crypto assets. More specifically, this relates to crypto usage for payments.
In addition, the bill would have provided special treatment for certain qualified US dollar stablecoins and some validation fee transactions. These cryptocurrency tax provisions have not yet become law, as H.R. 10357 was only ordered favorably reported by the House Ways and Means Committee.
Proposed Changes to Crypto Tax Reporting
For broker reporting, the bill would generally be an exception to the preceding rules, and would not require brokers to report qualifying de minimis validation-fee dispositions separately unless Treasury otherwise requires.
For taxpayers using the proposed simplified accounting method for widely traded digital assets, brokers would report on behalf of those taxpayers for aggregate acquisitions, dispositions and values, rather than reporting on individual transactions. These proposed rules generally would apply to returns and statements that are filed or furnished after December 31, 2027.
How the Crypto Tax Bill Would Affect Bitcoin Holders
Proposed crypto tax reform would apply to Bitcoin transactions, small payments, and mined income. Bitcoin is viewed as a digital asset subject to federal tax policy. H.R. 10357 has not been passed into law.
Buying and Selling Bitcoin
The bill generally does not eliminate the requirement for taxpayers to pay capital gains tax when disposing of Bitcoin, but it would apply traditional wash-sale and constructive-sale rules to cryptocurrency and allow eligible dealers and traders to make mark-to-market elections.
US crypto tax rules would still distinguish between an everyday investor acquiring Bitcoin and the everyday investor disposing of Bitcoin at a gain or a loss, except as enumerated in the bill.
Bitcoin Payments and Small Transactions
H.R. 10357 would provide a de minimis exclusion for certain small transactions, including the payment of network fees with qualifying digital assets. There is currently no de minimis exclusion from treatment of gains on personal dispositions of digital assets.
In this regard, any exemption for low-value transactions could be important for how will the crypto tax bill affect Bitcoin in everyday use: low-value transactions would avoid transaction-by-transaction tax treatment, which has made crypto payments administratively heavy.
Bitcoin Mining and Tax Rules
The law provides that the mining of newly minted digital assets would be taxed under existing law as ordinary income, but allows eligible taxpayers to elect treatment similar to self-created property with respect to when income is recognized for tax purposes.
Under the framework, mining means performing computations, or providing computing power, to assist with validating transactions of digital assets, which would include Bitcoin proof-of-work mining.
| Bitcoin Activity | Proposed Tax Treatment |
| Buying Bitcoin | Generally no taxable event from the purchase alone |
| Selling Bitcoin | Capital gains or losses would generally still apply |
| Small payments | Certain qualifying transactions could receive de minimis relief |
| Network fees | Certain qualifying fee payments could receive tax relief |
| Bitcoin mining | Newly mined Bitcoin generally treated as ordinary income, with a potential election affecting timing |
| Active trading | Wash-sale and constructive-sale rules could apply |
How the Bill Could Change Crypto Staking Taxes
H.R. 10357 could materially change how will the crypto tax bill affect staking by creating an elective alternative to the timing rules for new digital assets. The proposal originated as a companion bill to the Tax Clarity for Mining and Staking Act and was ultimately rolled into the larger package of bills from the House Ways and Means Committee.
When Staking Rewards Would Become Taxable
Under current IRS guidance, a cash-method taxpayer has reportable gross income from staking rewards when the taxpayer receives dominion and control over the rewards, and the amount of income is the FMV of the received rewards at the time received.
The new legislation retains ordinary income treatment by default, but allows certain newly created digital assets to elect treatment similar to that of newly created self-created property.
How the Bill Could Change the Timing of Staking Taxes
The election would defer income realization for the recipient of qualifying staking rewards, rather than realizing it when received, with the proposed five years being the maximum amount considered by the committee at the time.
The timing change is one of the most consequential proposed new crypto tax rules for stakers: IRS guidance currently taxes stakers when they gain control of the rewards, even if they sell them later.
What Stakers Should Know Before the Rules Change
Until the law changes and the IRS Guidance is modified, the IRS Guidance and existing law still apply. The IRS included United States v. Jarrett, T.C. Memo 2026-46, in its Guidance in 2026 under the heading “Cryptocurrency staking rewards are income.”
H.R. 10357 did not become law. The Ways and Means Committee voted 38-5 on September 16 to report an amended bill to the House; stakers should not apply the proposed treatment in current filings unless the bill is enacted, and its effective-date provisions are met.
What the Crypto Tax Bill Means for Stablecoins
H.R. 10357 would give favorable tax treatment to qualified US dollar stablecoins. Under this digital asset tax bill, the basis and gain or loss from the sale of a stablecoin would normally be determined on the basis of the US dollar redemption value, if certain statutory conditions are met.
Stablecoin Payments and Tax Treatment
Stablecoins are treated by the IRS as digital assets and, thus, as property for federal income tax, which means that a disposition may create capital gains or losses even if the broker does not issue a Form 1099-DA.
H.R. 10357 would create special statutory treatment for dollar stablecoins offered for sale that are redeemable at or near their par value, including for consideration in goods, services, or other property.
Read More: Crypto Legislation in Trouble? Experts React After CLARITY Act Vote
The Proposed De Minimis Exemption
However, the bill’s de minimis exemption does not seem to create an across-the-board small stablecoin purchase exemption, but instead appears to not treat as gain or loss the use of digital assets to pay qualified network fees or transaction fees of up to $10.
The separate stablecoin provisions generally would treat qualifying transactions near the peg according to the stablecoin’s redemption value and are proposed to apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2026.
Would Stablecoin Transactions Still Trigger Capital Gains Tax?
Yes, although the bill does not exempt all stablecoin transactions from taxes on capital gains. The special rules apply only to qualified US dollar stablecoins and consist of price-band, taxpayer, and transaction limitations.
So how will the crypto tax bill affect stablecoins? It depends on the transaction. Until this bill is signed into law, the current IRS rules apply, and dispositions of stablecoins can result in reportable capital gains or losses.
| Stablecoin Tax Issue | Current Rules | Proposed H.R. 10357 Treatment |
| Federal tax status | Digital assets are generally treated as property | Special rules for qualified US dollar stablecoins |
| Capital gains | A disposition may generate a gain or loss | Certain qualifying transactions could receive special treatment |
| Stablecoin value | Gain or loss generally depends on basis and disposition value | US dollar redemption value could determine basis and gain or loss in qualifying cases |
| Small transactions | No blanket exemption for stablecoin payments | Limited de minimis relief focuses on certain qualifying fees |
| Effective status | Current IRS rules apply | Not yet law |
Crypto Lending, DeFi and Other Transactions
The crypto tax law 2026 proposal addresses several areas where digital assets currently lack rules comparable to those for traditional securities, including lending and anti-abuse provisions. H.R. 10357 remains proposed legislation after advancing from the House Ways and Means Committee on September 16.
How Crypto Loans Could Be Treated
The bill would also expand IRC Section 1058 to certain digital assets that are traded on an exchange to allow for the applicable lending agreements to not trigger a taxable event if certain statutory requirements are met.
This is important because the existing Section 1058 protections, written in the context of securities, had not previously been tested in digital-asset lending.
Tax Rules for DeFi Transactions
The legislation would not create an exemption from taxation for all DeFi activities. Instead, tax provisions would apply to certain aspects of DeFi, such as qualifying lending transactions, safe harbors for DeFi trading, and mark-to-market treatment for certain digital asset dealers and traders.
As a result, DeFi users would need to follow each transaction with respect to the digital assets tax rules, and not have all activity be subject to the same tax.
Wash-Sale Rules and Digital Assets
One of the easiest solutions for Congress is to expand the wash-sale rule to the digital assets market. In current law, the wash-sale rule only applies to stock or securities, and digital assets are not classified as either.
The crypto tax changes would extend to cryptocurrency and other digital assets the same anti-abuse rules that apply to other securities, including wash sale rules. A loss from the sale of an affected asset would be deferred if the taxpayer purchased a substantially identical asset in the statutory wash-sale period. The package would also extend constructive-sale rules and other anti-abuse rules.
Who Would Benefit From the Crypto Tax Bill?
For those wondering what is the crypto tax bill designed to address, H.R. 10357 covers digital-asset reporting, mining and staking taxation, stablecoin treatment, and accounting rules.
Bitcoin Investors
The bill would also allow Bitcoin investors to receive the same simplified reporting for gains and losses, financial asset safe harbors for digital assets, and allow eligible digital-asset dealers and traders to rely on mark-to-market accounting.
However, the legislation does not provide for a blanket exemption for Bitcoin investment profits, and only applies to specific transactions and tax compliance measures.
Crypto Stakers and Miners
The most obvious potential beneficiaries of the proposed crypto tax reform are stakers and miners, as the package explicitly clarifies that all newly minted digital assets are reported as ordinary income while permitting taxpayers to elect self-created property treatment.
The committee proposal also suggested a five-year limit on deferrals under the mining and staking election.
Stablecoin Users and Crypto Businesses
Qualified US dollar stablecoin users would enjoy reduced tax and reporting friction on eligible transactions, as earlier versions of the bill provided that gain or loss on a regulated US dollar stablecoin would not be recognized under certain circumstances.
The bill has also been proposed to increase clarity regarding the regulation of accounting and reporting by cryptocurrency companies, but this has not come to fruition as the bill remains unpassed, although H.R. 10357 was ordered favorably reported to the House via a 38-5 committee vote on September 16.
| Group | Potential Impact |
| Bitcoin investors | Simplified reporting and expanded financial-asset tax rules |
| Crypto stakers | Potential election affecting when income from newly created assets is recognized |
| Bitcoin miners | Potential alternative treatment for newly mined digital assets |
| Stablecoin users | Special tax treatment for qualifying US dollar stablecoin transactions |
| Active crypto traders | Potential access to mark-to-market accounting for eligible taxpayers |
| Crypto businesses | Greater clarity around reporting, accounting and digital-asset transactions |
Who Could Face New Crypto Tax Rules?
H.R. 10357 integrates tax relief provisions with compliance and anti-abuse provisions. The new crypto tax rules would mainly affect frequent traders and some DeFi participants, as well as businesses that process digital assets for their customers.
Active Crypto Traders
The bill would extend wash-sale and constructive-sale rules to digital assets. An exception exists for eligible digital-asset traders, who would be allowed to elect mark-to-market accounting, the accounting treatment provided to traders in securities and commodities. The measure is likely to affect active traders in digital assets.
Small-transaction relief under the bill is not universal; for example, digital-asset traders, brokers, and dealers are not exempt from the network fee.
DeFi Users
IRS guidance currently provides that wrapping, liquidity providing, staking, and digital-asset lending do not need to be reported on Form 1099-DA. This guidance is, however, time-limited and does not operate to exempt income from these activities from tax liability. DeFi participants may be subject to different treatment depending upon the activity.
Separately, H.R. 10357 would provide rules for taxing qualifying digital-asset lending and other transactions, and the crypto tax legislation should not be interpreted as creating one tax regime for all DeFi activity.
Crypto Exchanges and Brokers
Custodial exchanges, as well as other covered brokers, already have Form 1099-DA reporting obligations beginning in 2025, with some covered digital asset basis information reporting beginning in 2026.
The bill would also alter the reporting requirements and provide exceptions and simplified treatment for certain transactions. These are proposed changes; on September 16, the Ways and Means Committee voted 38-5 to send the amended bill to the House.
When Could the New Crypto Tax Rules Take Effect?
The new crypto tax rules are not in force yet. H.R. 10357 cleared the House Ways and Means Committee on September 16, 2026, by a 38-5 vote, but that committee action did not enact the legislation.
What Happens After the House Committee Vote
The committee ordered the amended bill favorably reported to the House, though the US crypto tax bill would still need to proceed through the rest of the federal legislative process to be signed into law (e.g., through Congress’ consideration and presidential signature).
As of September 21, the Ways and Means record shows just a committee report, not House passage, for H.R. 10357.
Could the Bill Still Change?
Yes. The committee made a technical amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 10357 and reported it. Two additional amendments were proposed during the markup but rejected.
So further legislative activity can change the law’s text before it is actually enacted. That’s why something like when will the crypto tax bill take effect can not be answered with just one date.
Read More: Crypto Vote: Why the CLARITY Act Just Failed in the Senate
When Would the New Rules Apply?
The effective date of the provisions varies, but for example, the stablecoin provisions analyzed by the Joint Committee on Taxation apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2026.
The broker-reporting changes that the Joint Committee on Taxation analyzed generally would apply to returns and statements required after December 31, 2027.
Other provisions are effective on different dates, so the timing of those crypto tax changes depends not just on the timing of enactments but on effective-date language.
Crypto Tax Bill vs. Current US Crypto Tax Rules
The US crypto tax rules currently treat digital assets as property for federal income-tax purposes. H.R. 10357 would codify current law, but would also then apply new rules related to crypto reporting, staking and mining, stablecoins, and crypto lending and trading.
What the Law Says Today
Taxpayers must generally report income, gains or losses on dispositions of digital assets. A disposition may typically occur when crypto is sold, exchanged for other digital or non-digital assets, or used to pay for goods or services.
Broker reporting is also being phased in, starting with gross-proceeds reporting in 2025, and basis reporting for specified covered digital assets for transactions beginning in 2026.
What the New Bill Would Change
The Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act would provide exemptions for many digital asset-related transactions, including activities like mining, staking, and digital-asset lending, as well as applying traditional finance’s wash-sale rules and constructive sale provisions to digital assets.
The bill would also simplify some reporting requirements and provide special treatment to qualifying stablecoins and small transactions.
Key Differences for Crypto Investors
The main difference is that the existing law would apply existing property crypto tax rules, whereas the proposed bill would create new and separate provisions for digital assets. The bill would also more clearly define some of the activities related to crypto.
For investors, it would also mean less, but also more limited, relief (e.g., simplified handling of certain transactions) because parts of H.R. 10357 applying the proposed wash-sale and other anti-abuse rules to these options would apply in practice as well.
| Tax Area | Current US Rules | Proposed H.R. 10357 Rules |
| Digital asset status | Generally treated as property | Property framework retained with additional digital-asset provisions |
| Crypto sales | Gains and losses generally reportable | Core capital-gains treatment generally remains |
| Staking and mining | Income generally recognized under existing tax rules | Potential alternative treatment for qualifying newly created assets |
| Stablecoins | Generally subject to digital-asset property rules | Special treatment for qualifying US dollar stablecoins |
| Crypto lending | Limited digital-asset-specific statutory treatment | New rules for certain qualifying lending transactions |
| Wash-sale rules | Generally do not apply to digital assets | Would extend wash-sale rules to covered digital assets |
| Broker reporting | Form 1099-DA requirements being phased in | Certain reporting requirements could be simplified or modified |
What Crypto Investors Should Do Now
Because H.R. 10357 has not gone into effect, crypto investors should not yet use its provisions for tax reporting, but otherwise must still report taxable digital-asset income, gains and losses to the IRS even if they do not receive Form 1099-DA.
Keep Records of Crypto Transactions
The IRS requires taxpayers to keep records sufficient to substantiate the positions taken on federal tax returns. For cryptocurrencies, this documentation may include receipts, sales, exchanges, transfers, fair market values, and records of basis and holding periods.
To enable accurate reporting, beginning with transactions in 2025, brokers are required to report basis for covered digital assets on Form 1099-DA for all gross proceeds.
Review Staking and DeFi Tax Records
Staking rewards are tracked separately from DeFi activity, as the temporary Form 1099-DA exceptions for staking, liquidity-provider, wrapping, and digital-asset lending transactions do not apply, and the IRS is very clear that Form 1099-DA reporting exceptions do not apply to rewards or other compensation.
That distinction matters while proposed crypto tax changes remain pending: an exception from broker reporting is not the same as an exception from a taxpayer’s reporting obligations.
Watch for Further Changes to the Bill
If you’re wondering are crypto taxes changing in 2026, note that the proposed legislation is different than what actually became law. The House Ways and Means Committee, on September 16, voted 38-5 to amend H.R. 10357 and ordered the bill favorably reported to the House of Representatives.
However, the terms of the bill can change during the legislative process. Until the bill is signed into law and goes into effect, taxpayers can rely on IRS guidance and track Congressional action.
FAQ
H.R. 10357 instead amend the Internal Revenue Code to cover taxation and reporting of digital assets such as digital asset mining, staking, cryptocurrency stablecoins, and cryptocurrency trading, and does not create a new tax on cryptocurrency.
Not into law. The revised bill was reported from the House Ways and Means Committee in a 38-5 vote on September 16, 2026.
The new law would change a number of tax rules that apply to Bitcoin and other qualifying digital currencies, including wash-sale treatment, accounting methods, and some transaction reporting requirements, if signed into law.
Possibly. The proposal would apply ordinary-income treatment to new assets, but the parties would be allowed to elect out of ordinary-income treatment under certain circumstances and for a maximum of five years.
Not necessarily. The proposed law would only apply to specific situations and to particular US dollar stablecoins, and not to all stablecoin transactions more generally.
