Forbes: Crypto assets are entering a "watershed" tax year; the complexity of the 2026 tax season is significantly increasing.

As 2026 approaches, crypto investors will face a drastically different tax environment. Several digital asset tax experts point out that new regulations and reporting rules will make the 2026 tax season (corresponding to 2025) a "high-difficulty hurdle," and investors may face compliance risks without advance planning. The report indicates that the most significant change is the implementation of Form 1099-DA. Starting in 2025, US brokers will be required to report crypto asset disposal information to the IRS, and this form will enter the taxpayers' field of vision on a large scale for the first time in 2026. Since initial reports will primarily focus on "total transaction amount" and may not include cost price, if investors fail to accurately declare costs, the system may default to "zero cost," triggering automatic inquiries. Furthermore, the tax approach will shift from the previous "uniform pool" accounting to calculating costs separately for each wallet and account. This means that assets from different exchanges and different self-custodied wallets can no longer be mixed for calculation, and the collation and reconstruction of historical transaction records will become a one-time but massively labor-intensive task. Users with multiple accounts and frequent participation in DeFi face particularly complex challenges. Forbes also summarized other key considerations, including: multi-platform users need to integrate various 1099-DAs with on-chain data themselves; tax professionals with crypto experience are scarce, so early appointments are advisable; current laws do not apply to stock "wash trading" rules for crypto assets, but related legislation may change this; de minimis tax exemption has not yet been legislated; the tax attributes of DeFi lending and tokenized instruments need to be determined on a case-by-case basis; large crypto asset donations typically still require compliance assessment reports. The report cites industry insiders as saying that 2025 will be a true "watershed" year for crypto tax rules, with their impact becoming most apparent in 2026. Preparing records and understanding new rules in advance, and collaborating with tax advisors familiar with digital assets, will be crucial for investors to avoid compliance risks. (Forbes)