What You Don't Know About Crypto Taxes Can Hurt You

Steve Latham is the chairman of Claritas, a new venture that provides consolidated views of crypto holdings, gains and losses.

As shown below, searches for "Bitcoin tax" grew almost as much as crypto market caps.

With the IRS focusing on the new tax laws, there has been no new cryptocurrency tax guidance since 2014.

Few investors fully understand the issues and implications of how to treat 2017 crypto gains.

"There's a lot of confusion around taxes and cryptocurrency, and for good reason," said Mark Steber, Chief Tax Officer and CPA at Jackson Hewitt.

"Changes in tax law significantly lag the rapid growth in crypto popularity. It's not always clear when a realized gain is taxable income, as defined by the IRS.".

The tax you'll owe on that gain just made that car significantly more expensive.

You can deduct the greater of the market value or the cost basis without paying tax on the gain.

Result in a higher tax bill for most who bought and sold crypto in 2017.

In talking with CPAs and active traders, we anticipate a spike in extensions this year as taxpayers buy time to figure out their crypto tax picture.