Theater Of The Courtroom

The explosive growth in the crypto-currency sector has created “questions about tax compliance.” Back in March 2014, the IRS issued long-awaited guidance (IRS Notice 2014-21) labeling cryptocurrency, including Bitcoin, as “intangible property.” Investors and traders hold Bitcoin as a capital asset, as if it were a precious metal or corporate stock. Because it’s a capital asset, the IRS requires American resident taxpayers to report Bitcoin trading income and losses worldwide on U.S. resident tax returns. In other words, if you trade bitcoin, you must report capital gains to the IRS. It doesn’t matter whether you repatriate funds back to the U.S., or not. As far as accounting goes, investors and traders holding cryptocurrency should use capital gain or loss tax treatment on sales and exchanges, with the realization method. For example, if you buy Bitcoins with U.S. dollars and later sell them for U.S. dollars, a capital gain or loss needs to be reported on that transaction. Americans also trade Bitcoins on Bit