Summary
Crypto held inside a tax-advantaged Crypto IRA, like those offered through iTrustCapital, are not subject to the same reporting requirements as exchanges or taxable crypto accounts. Because an IRA is a retirement account, trading activity inside the account does not trigger current-year capital gains taxes or require Form 1099-DA reporting. Starting with the 2025 tax year, the IRS requires most U.S. crypto brokers and exchanges to report digital asset sales and certain transactions on Form 1099-DA, including gross proceeds. These new reporting rules apply to taxable crypto accounts, not to assets held within IRAs.
New Crypto Tax Rules?
What you’re about to read may come off as a little technical, but if you have a Crypto IRA, you don’t have to worry about this.
The IRS expanded crypto reporting requirements for the 2025 tax year, and now it is time to file. If you bought or sold crypto on any centralized exchange in 2025, here is exactly what changed, what it costs you, and the account structure that sidesteps the problem entirely.
What Changed in Crypto Taxes in 2025?
Under the new rules, crypto exchanges must report gross proceeds from every sale or exchange, stablecoin transactions in aggregate, and small-value sales including gas fees paid as part of a transaction.
That last category is worth pausing on. If you paid a gas fee as part of a crypto sale or exchange on a centralized exchange, that is part of a reportable event. Stablecoin sales or exchanges executed through a broker are reportable like other digital asset transactions, meaning proceeds from those transactions are included on Form 1099-DA.
The IRS is treating virtually every sale or exchange through a centralized exchange as a transaction that needs to be documented and disclosed.
What Is Form 1099-DA and Who Receives One?
Form 1099-DA is a new IRS tax form specifically designed for digital asset reporting. It is the crypto equivalent of the 1099-B that stock investors receive from their brokers, but broader in scope and covering transaction types that have never been formally reported before.
Any investor who holds crypto through a centralized exchange and executed at least one reportable transaction during the 2025 tax year should expect to receive one. That includes sales, exchanges between crypto assets, and certain stablecoin and gas fee transactions.
The form reports gross proceeds from your transactions, meaning what you received, not your net gain or loss. You are still responsible for calculating your own cost basis and reconciling it against what the exchange reports. If your records do not match the 1099-DA, that discrepancy needs to be resolved before you file.
Why Even Exchanges Are Calling the New Rules Excessive
Some of the largest and most compliance-focused crypto platforms in the industry have gone on record stating that the new reporting requirements go too far. When platforms that built their reputations on regulatory compliance publicly push back on IRS rules, it tells you something real about the scope of what is being required.
Their specific objections cut to the heart of why this matters for everyday investors. Stablecoins are designed to track the dollar, meaning there is typically no gain and no loss when you transact with them. Yet exchanges are now required to generate formal IRS documentation for stablecoin transactions once a customer exceeds $10,000 in annual proceeds, creating paperwork for assets that produce no taxable income.
On small transactions, major exchanges have publicly advocated for a de minimis threshold, a floor below which transactions would not need to be reported. Under the current rules, small-value digital asset sales facilitated by a broker are reportable events, including dispositions of crypto used to pay transaction fees. Exchanges have argued this adds real administrative burden while generating almost nothing for the Treasury, and discourages people from using digital assets as functional currency.
How the New Crypto Reporting Rules Affect You at Filing Time
For anyone who actively bought and sold crypto in 2025 through a taxable account, this filing season is going to look very different.
You will receive a Form 1099-DA from your broker listing proceeds from your transactions. Your job is to reconcile those proceeds against your own cost basis records, meaning what you originally paid for every asset you sold. If you transacted across multiple platforms or moved assets between wallets, that reconciliation gets complicated fast.
Every gain you realized, whether it is $50 or $50,000, is now formally documented in an IRS record. Short-term gains on assets held under a year are taxed as ordinary income. Long-term gains on assets held longer get more favorable treatment, but you have to prove the holding period. Misclassify something and you are understating your tax liability. Miss a transaction entirely and you are underreporting to the IRS.
For active investors, the volume of reportable events could make this a weeks-long project. For casual investors who were not keeping careful records, it could mean reconstructing a full year of activity before the filing deadline.
Don't Want to Deal With These Reporting Headaches? There's a Better Way.
If reading through all of that felt exhausting, that reaction is worth paying attention to. The complexity above, the reconciliation, the cost basis tracking, the short-term versus long-term classification, repeats every single year as long as you hold crypto in a taxable account.
But here is something most crypto investors have never been told: there is an account structure specifically designed for long-term investors that changes the tax equation entirely.
It is called a Crypto IRA.
A Crypto IRA is a self-directed retirement account that lets you buy, sell, and hold crypto 24/7 inside a tax-advantaged structure. It works the same way as any other place you buy crypto. You can buy and sell whenever you want, hold long-term, earn rewards through staking, and more. The only difference is the account it sits in, and that difference changes everything when it comes to taxes.
Why a Crypto IRA Changes Everything
Crypto IRA vs. Exchange: What's the Difference?
On the surface, a Crypto IRA feels identical to a standard exchange account. You log in, you buy, you sell, you hold. The assets are the same. The markets are the same. The 24/7 access is the same. The difference is what happens at tax time.
|
Feature |
Standard Exchange |
Crypto IRA |
|
Buy & sell crypto 24/7 |
✓ |
✓ |
|
90+ cryptocurrencies |
✓ |
✓ |
|
Staking rewards |
✓ |
✓ |
|
Physical gold & silver |
✗ |
✓ |
|
Capital gains tax per transaction |
Yes |
No |
|
Form 1099-DA issued |
Yes |
No |
|
Cost basis reconciliation required |
Yes |
No |
|
Tax on gains deferred or eliminated |
No |
Yes |
Every transaction you make on a standard exchange is a taxable event. Every sale generates a gain or loss that needs to be reported, reconciled, and filed. The 1099-DA your exchange sends to the IRS is a record of every one of those events. You are responsible for making sure your numbers match.
Inside a Crypto IRA, none of that applies the same way. Transactions made within the account do not trigger individual taxable events. There is no capital gains calculation per transaction, no cost basis reconciliation on each sale, no 1099-DA generated every time you buy or sell. The account handles it. You invest. The tax complexity does not follow you home every April.
Do Crypto IRAs Require a 1099-DA?
No. Crypto held inside a tax-advantaged retirement account is not subject to the same per-transaction reporting requirements that apply to standard exchange accounts. The IRS has long treated retirement accounts under a different reporting framework, and Crypto IRAs operate within that same structure.
With a traditional Crypto IRA, the tax event is deferred until you take a distribution in retirement, exactly like a traditional IRA. With a Roth Crypto IRA, you contribute after-tax dollars and qualified withdrawals in retirement can be completely tax-free. Either way, the transactions you make inside the account stay inside the account from a tax perspective.
This is not a loophole. It is the same tax treatment that stock and bond investors have had access to for decades, now available for digital assets.
Open a Crypto IRA at iTrustCapital
iTrustCapital was built specifically for investors who want the full upside of crypto without the annual tax headache that comes with holding it in a taxable account. And it is not just the tax structure that sets it apart.
Here is what you get inside an iTrustCapital account:
- Tax-advantaged account structure: no capital gains tax every time you buy and sell, and no 1099-DA paperwork stress at tax time
- 90+ cryptocurrencies and precious metals: buy and sell dozens of assets 24/7
- Crypto staking: earn rewards on eligible assets
- Stablecoin rewards: earn rewards on stablecoins
- Desktop and mobile platform: manage your portfolio from anywhere, any time
- Institutional-grade custody: through trusted storage providers, the same security standards used by the largest players in the industry
- Award-winning US-based customer support: when you need it
The results speak for themselves. iTrustCapital has earned more than 13,000 five-star reviews across Google and Trustpilot, something truly rare in an industry saturated with chat bots and AI-generated feedback.
Few platforms have combined all of this inside a single IRA. iTrustCapital was built to fill that gap, and for investors now staring down a 1099-DA and questioning whether the annual reporting burden is worth it, it is the most direct answer available.
The same assets. The same market access. A fundamentally different tax outcome.
Click here to learn more and open an account today!
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the new crypto tax rules for 2025?
For the first time, the IRS is requiring exchanges to formally report your crypto transaction proceeds directly to the IRS using a new form called the 1099-DA. Sales and exchanges of digital assets facilitated by brokers are now reported to the IRS as part of an official record. If you bought or sold crypto on a centralized exchange in 2025, this affects you.
What is Form 1099-DA?
It is a new tax form the IRS created specifically for crypto. Think of it as the crypto version of the 1099-B that stock investors have received from their brokers for years. Your exchange sends it to both you and the IRS, showing how much you received from your transactions during the year.
Which exchanges are required to send a 1099-DA?
Any centralized custodial exchange operating in the United States. If you hold crypto on a platform that controls your assets on your behalf, they are required to file one for you if you had reportable transactions in 2025.
Do I still owe taxes even if I don't receive a 1099-DA?
Yes. The 1099-DA is a reporting requirement on the exchange, not on you. Your tax obligations exist regardless of whether you receive the form. The IRS expects you to report your crypto gains even if your exchange has not yet sent a form.
Do crypto IRAs require a 1099-DA?
No. Transactions made inside a tax-advantaged Crypto IRA do not trigger the same per-transaction reporting requirements. The IRS treats retirement accounts under a different framework, meaning you are not generating a taxable event and a corresponding 1099-DA every time you buy or sell inside the account. Platforms like iTrustCapital offer Crypto IRAs specifically designed for investors who want to buy and sell crypto without the annual tax reporting burden that comes with a standard exchange account.
What is a Crypto IRA?
A Crypto IRA is a self-directed retirement account that lets you buy, sell, and hold cryptocurrency inside a tax-advantaged structure. It works the same way as any other place you buy crypto. You can transact 24/7, earn rewards through staking, hold stablecoins, and more. The difference is the account it sits in. Because it is a retirement account, the IRS treats it differently than a standard exchange account, meaning your transactions inside it do not trigger capital gains tax or generate a 1099-DA every time you buy or sell. iTrustCapital offers Crypto IRAs that include more than 90 cryptocurrencies, physical precious metals, staking, and stablecoin rewards, all inside a single tax-advantaged account.
How do I file crypto taxes with a 1099-DA?
When you receive your 1099-DA, you need to match the gross proceeds listed on the form against your own cost basis records for each asset sold. The difference is your gain or loss. Short-term gains on assets held under a year are taxed as ordinary income. Long-term gains on assets held longer get more favorable rates. If your transaction history is complex, crypto tax software or a qualified tax professional can help.
How is a 1099-DA different from a 1099-B?
The 1099-B has been around for decades and covers stocks and securities. The 1099-DA is its crypto equivalent, but broader. It covers transaction types that a 1099-B never had to deal with, including stablecoin transfers and gas fees paid as part of a transaction.
Why do crypto tax returns take longer to process in 2026?
This is the first year the IRS is receiving structured crypto transaction data at scale, which may increase reconciliation reviews in some cases. When your reported gains do not perfectly match what your exchange reported on the 1099-DA, it can trigger a manual review. High transaction volumes and new form types mean the IRS systems are working through more complexity than in previous years.
What is a gas fee?
A gas fee is a transaction fee required to process and validate activity on a blockchain network. When you send crypto, swap tokens on a decentralized platform, or move assets on-chain, the network uses computing power to confirm and record the transaction. The gas fee compensates the validators or miners who maintain that network. Gas fees are typically paid in the blockchain’s native cryptocurrency, such as ETH on Ethereum, and can fluctuate depending on network demand. On most centralized exchanges, standard buy and sell orders involve trading fees rather than separate on-chain gas fees. Gas fees generally apply when assets are moved on-chain, such as when withdrawing crypto to an external wallet.
Disclaimer
This article is for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute investment or tax advice in any way or constitute an offer to buy or sell any digital asset, cryptocurrency, or security or to participate in any investment strategy.
iTrustCapital is a fintech software platform for alternative assets. TrustCapital is not an exchange, funding portal, custodian, trust company, licensed broker, dealer, broker-dealer, investment advisor, investment manager, or adviser in the United States or elsewhere. iTrustCapital is not affiliated with and does not endorse any particular digital asset, precious metal or investment strategy.
Investing in any digital asset or cryptocurrency (including meme coins) carries significant risks due to their speculative and highly volatile nature. Past performance is not an indication of future results. No investment is completely risk-free, and every investment carries the potential for losing some or all of the principal amount invested. Digital assets and cryptocurrencies are not legal tender backed by the United States government, nor is it subject to Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) insurance or protections. Clients do not receive a choice of custody partner.
Investors assume the risk of all purchase and sale decisions. iTrustCapital makes no guarantee or representation regarding investors’ ability to profit from any transaction or the tax implications of any transaction. iTrustCapital does not provide legal, investment or tax advice. Conduct your own research and consult with a qualified legal, investment, or tax professional to assess your own risk tolerance prior to investing.
iTrustCapital makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of this information and does not have any liability for any representations (expressed or implied) or omissions from the information contained herein. iTrustCapital disclaims any and all liability to any party for any direct, indirect, implied, punitive, special, incidental or other consequential damages arising directly or indirectly from any use of this information, which is provided as is, without warranties.
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