Cryptocurrency and U.S. Taxes
The Internal Revenue Service has stated that in years past they have received several hundreds of cryptocurrency filings per annum. They have also stated their intent to implement a crackdown on tax evasion via crypto , as well as having published a PDF made available on the Coinbase Pro site , stating that digital currency amounts to property , and as such every trade , exchange , transfer etc. is a taxable event.
In 2018 I suffered by far more losses than gains as f.o.m.o. gave rise to fear and dread , and I made approximately 700 plus trades trying to backpedal my way through this bear market. As the regulators became more vocal , I began to fear that it would cost thousands to report that I had lost a similar amount.
Then I stumbled upon Cointracking.info . Cointracking.info has been around for a while , and they offer a comparatively inexpensive service allowing for API importation (with carefully selected permissions of course,) which to me was vital because whether or not one wants to admit it, I did buy my first coin at Coinbase , and Coinbase .csv files are wildly inaccurate, incomplete , and do not mix well with information from better exchanges. Currently , a coinbase .csv file lists every sale or purchase as a deposit or withdrawal. I am sure you can imagine how difficult that would make it to calculate capital gains/losses when they reduce your cost basis to zero.
Cointracking.info offers a free account , and two paid accounts. Of the paid accounts , one covers a year (buy in February) and the other a lifetime. Because of the difficulty with coinbase .csv files, and .csv files in general I was permitted a 2 week trial of "PRO," which allows for API import and all of a sudden everything added up and was accurate. The site offers many different services , from trade analysis to balance by currency , exchange , averaging ; but most importantly is up to date on the tax laws of most countries. They offer form Form 8949 as well as a table style report and a very detailed report of EVERY single trade. They also offer FIFO,FILO,LIFO etc. , unsold assets as cost basis, all assets as cost basis , all currencies or only digital currencies , whether or not to include deposits and withdrawals , and whether or not to group trades by day (which can help if one has used multiple exchanges in different time zones, as well as reducing total trade amounts ;and warn you of inaccuracies. One can also choose between average prices or exchange specific prices in account settings.
I have been paid NOTHING and write this article because I believe there are "services" out there that may not be honest, or perhaps wildly overpriced , and because I like what i see. Most importantly- I can sleep at night again.
Caveat Emptor
In 2018 I suffered by far more losses than gains as f.o.m.o. gave rise to fear and dread , and I made approximately 700 plus trades trying to backpedal my way through this bear market. As the regulators became more vocal , I began to fear that it would cost thousands to report that I had lost a similar amount.
Then I stumbled upon Cointracking.info . Cointracking.info has been around for a while , and they offer a comparatively inexpensive service allowing for API importation (with carefully selected permissions of course,) which to me was vital because whether or not one wants to admit it, I did buy my first coin at Coinbase , and Coinbase .csv files are wildly inaccurate, incomplete , and do not mix well with information from better exchanges. Currently , a coinbase .csv file lists every sale or purchase as a deposit or withdrawal. I am sure you can imagine how difficult that would make it to calculate capital gains/losses when they reduce your cost basis to zero.
Cointracking.info offers a free account , and two paid accounts. Of the paid accounts , one covers a year (buy in February) and the other a lifetime. Because of the difficulty with coinbase .csv files, and .csv files in general I was permitted a 2 week trial of "PRO," which allows for API import and all of a sudden everything added up and was accurate. The site offers many different services , from trade analysis to balance by currency , exchange , averaging ; but most importantly is up to date on the tax laws of most countries. They offer form Form 8949 as well as a table style report and a very detailed report of EVERY single trade. They also offer FIFO,FILO,LIFO etc. , unsold assets as cost basis, all assets as cost basis , all currencies or only digital currencies , whether or not to include deposits and withdrawals , and whether or not to group trades by day (which can help if one has used multiple exchanges in different time zones, as well as reducing total trade amounts ;and warn you of inaccuracies. One can also choose between average prices or exchange specific prices in account settings.
I have been paid NOTHING and write this article because I believe there are "services" out there that may not be honest, or perhaps wildly overpriced , and because I like what i see. Most importantly- I can sleep at night again.
Caveat Emptor
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