What is Form 1099-DA? 

Form 1099-DA, Digital Asset Proceeds From Broker Transactions, is the official tax form finalized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that requires custodial digital asset brokers to report information regarding digital asset transactions, such as cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

According to the IRS, the form ensures that taxpayers receive statements containing the same information reported to the IRS, supporting accurate returns and improved compliance. As with other forms in the 1099 series, it provides third-party data that can be matched against a taxpayer's return, addressing the inconsistent documentation, incomplete transaction data and limited third-party verification that have characterized digital asset reporting. Form 1099-DA constitutes the United States element of a broader set of digital asset reporting regimes, alongside the OECD's Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) and DAC8 in the European Union.

Why was Form 1099-DA introduced?

Before Form 1099-DA, sales and exchanges of digital assets produced no broker statement and taxpayers reported dispositions from their own records. There was no standardized format across platforms, taxpayers established cost basis and fair market value themselves, and the IRS held no third-party data against which to verify a return.

The requirement comes from changes to Internal Revenue Code section 6045 made by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58), implemented through final regulations published as Treasury Decision 10000 on July 9, 2024 and applying to sales effected on or after January 1, 2025.

When do the Form 1099-DA reporting requirements apply?

  • Transactions effected on or after January 1, 2025

    Brokers report gross proceeds

  • Transactions effected on or after January 1, 2026

    Brokers report gross proceeds for all digital assets and basis for covered securities, while basis reporting for noncovered securities remains voluntary

  • Real estate closings on or after January 1, 2026

    Real estate reporting persons treated as brokers report the fair market value of digital assets paid by buyers

Who must file Form 1099-DA? 

Businesses meeting the definition of a Digital Asset Broker must file Form 1099-DA. Under the IRS instructions, a broker is any person who, in the ordinary course of a trade or business, stands ready to effect sales of digital assets to be made by others. This includes businesses that regularly redeem digital assets they created or issued, and those effecting dispositions of customers' digital assets as an agent, dealer or digital asset middleman. Reporting is generally limited to U.S. digital asset brokers.

Businesses within scope include:

  • Operators of custodial digital asset trading platforms and exchanges that hold customer assets and execute dispositions on their behalf.
  • Certain hosted wallet providers that control private keys and effect sales for customers. Custody alone does not create an obligation: a custodian that transfers assets at a customer's direction, without knowing the nature of the transaction or its proceeds, has not effected a sale.
  • Certain processors of digital asset payments, where the processor knows or ordinarily would know both the nature of the transaction and the gross proceeds. Sales of 600 USD or less per customer per year are excepted, but once that threshold is exceeded all of the customer's sales become reportable.
  • Digital asset kiosks, real estate reporting persons that know or ordinarily would know that a buyer used digital assets as payment, and persons accepting digital assets as payment for broker services, securities or commodities.

What needs to be reported under Form 1099-DA? 

Under Form 1099-DA, brokers and other reporting entities are required to report the following information: 

  • Customer identification: the name, address and taxpayer identification number of the customer.
  • Gross proceeds: from any sale, exchange or other disposition, including the fair market value of non-cash property, services or digital assets received, reduced by digital asset transaction costs such as fees, commissions and transfer taxes. De minimis exceptions apply to payment processor sales, and, under the optional reporting methods, to qualifying stablecoins (10,000 USD) and specified NFTs (600 USD).
  • Transaction details: the asset's Digital Token Identifier Foundation (DTIF) code, name and quantity, the date of disposal, any units transferred in with their transfer-in date, and any federal tax withheld.
  • Cost basis (covered securities): basis, acquisition date and the short-term or long-term gain or loss classification. A digital asset is a covered security only where acquired after 2025 in an account for which the broker provided custodial services and held in that account until the broker effects the disposition. For noncovered securities, this reporting is voluntary.

What is the difference between covered and noncovered digital assets?

For Form 1099-DA purposes, a digital asset is a covered security only where it was acquired after 2025 in an account for which the broker provided custodial services, and held there until disposition. The broker reports the acquisition date, basis and the gain or loss classified as short-term or long-term alongside gross proceeds.

Everything else is noncovered: assets acquired before 2026, assets transferred in to the broker, and assets it did not hold custodially at acquisition. The broker may check the noncovered security box and report gross proceeds alone, leaving basis to the customer's records. A Form 1099-DA filed without that box checked, however, is treated as reporting a covered security, exposing the broker to penalties on the incomplete basis fields.

How is Form 1099-DA reported?  

Generally, brokers file one Form 1099-DA per transaction with the IRS and furnish a corresponding statement to the customer. The form imposes no new substantive tax obligation, as gains and losses on digital asset dispositions were reportable before it existed; what changes is the information flow, with the IRS receiving the same transaction data as the customer and digital assets falling within the automated matching long applied across the 1099 series. 

Recipients carry transactions to Form 8949, where the one-letter code identifies the applicable box by holding period and whether basis was reported to the IRS; totals flow to Schedule D and the Form 1040 digital asset question is answered. Reconciliation is the main work, since broker figures will not always match the taxpayer's records, and basis must be calculated before filing. All digital asset income, gains and losses are reportable whether or not a form is received, and corrections are requested from the issuing broker rather than the IRS. 

How can Regnology support brokers in fulfilling their 1099-DA reporting obligation?  

Regnology Tax Hub offers a comprehensive solution for tax reporting that encompasses Form 1099-DA requirements. The platform enables digital asset brokers to calculate cost basis, generate client-ready PDF forms, and submit bulk electronic reports directly to the IRS using advanced machine-to-machine capabilities.

Regnology has decades of experience calculating and delivering Capital Gains and Cost Basis Reporting for TradFi, both in the United States and in more than 20 other countries. Leveraging proven technology and extensive experience, Regnology ensures accurate and efficient tax reporting for brokers.

Equipping your organization for what’s next

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