House Republicans on the Ways and Means Committee released the Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act on September 15, 2026, and the committee advanced it the next day by a 38-5 vote, according to CoinDesk. The measure would not rewrite all crypto taxation, but it would make several concrete changes: a narrow $10 exception for certain fees, ordinary-income treatment for mining and staking, and wash-sale limits for traded digital assets.
The bill matters because crypto holders today often face tax accounting on routine blockchain activity, while some investors have also used digital assets to harvest losses in ways that stock investors generally cannot. For affluent households with large digital-asset positions, concentrated bitcoin or ether gains, or private investment vehicles with crypto exposure, the proposal could tighten year-end tax planning even as it simplifies a small slice of recordkeeping.
What Changed
According to Blockonomi, the bill would create a de minimis exception for qualifying crypto transactions and network fees of $10 or less. The proposal also addresses certain U.S. dollar stablecoins that move slightly from their $1 target, and in some cases redemption value would serve as basis when the asset is acquired near that value.
That is a narrower break than some crypto users may expect. As 24/7 Wall St. reported, the proposal would exempt qualifying network or transaction fees of $10 or less, not the underlying purchase itself. In practical terms, using bitcoin to buy coffee could still trigger a capital-gain or capital-loss calculation on the bitcoin spent, even if a small blockchain fee attached to the transaction qualifies for the exception.
The bill would also let taxpayers elect simplified annual accounting for traded digital assets instead of tracking each qualifying transaction individually, according to Blockonomi. Both the fee exemption and the annual accounting rule would begin in 2028.
On the revenue-raising side, the legislation would extend wash-sale rules to traded digital assets. That would bring crypto closer to the rules that already apply to other investments by disallowing certain losses when a taxpayer sells an asset and reacquires the same or a substantially identical asset within 30 days before or after the sale.
Who Is Affected
The narrow fee exception is most relevant for taxpayers who use digital assets in routine transactions and have struggled with detailed lot-by-lot tracking. But the larger economic effect may fall on investors who actively manage gains and losses in taxable accounts.
Mining and staking are another important piece. Blockonomi said the proposal would generally treat mining and staking income as ordinary income. The version released by the committee did not include an earlier concept that some industry groups had supported, which would have allowed certain taxpayers to defer income recognition on newly created digital assets until sale.
The bill also includes a rule for investment trusts, allowing them to stake digital assets without that activity alone changing their tax status, according to Blockonomi. That could matter for pooled investment structures and trusts that want more certainty around operational crypto activity.
For taxpayers with past reporting problems, the measure would direct the Treasury Department to establish a Digital Asset Voluntary Disclosure Program within 12 months of enactment. Eligible taxpayers could amend earlier returns and pay tax, interest, and penalties.
The After-Tax Math
The main planning impact in the current draft is less about tiny payment fees and more about wash-sale restrictions. Example: an investor buys 10 bitcoin at a tax basis of $80,000 each, for total basis of $800,000. The position falls to $700,000, and the investor sells, creating a potential $100,000 capital loss.
Under current rules, some crypto investors have been able to sell at a loss and quickly buy back the same asset while still claiming the loss. Under the bill, if the investor repurchases the same or a substantially identical digital asset within the 30-day window before or after the sale, that $100,000 loss could be disallowed at that time.
That does not mean the economic loss disappears forever, but it can change the timing of when the loss is usable on a federal return. For households realizing large capital gains elsewhere in a taxable portfolio, timing can matter. A delayed loss may not offset gains in the year the investor expected.
| Provision | What the bill would do | Potential tax effect |
|---|---|---|
| Qualifying crypto fee exception | Ignore gain or loss on certain fees of $10 or less | Less reporting on small qualifying fees |
| Annual accounting election | Allow simplified annual gain-loss calculation for traded digital assets | May reduce transaction-by-transaction tracking burden |
| Wash-sale expansion | Apply 30-day loss-disallowance rule to traded digital assets | Could limit immediate tax-loss harvesting |
| Mining and staking income | Generally treat as ordinary income | Less room to argue for sale-date recognition instead |
Moves to Discuss With Your Advisor
Because the bill has advanced only through committee, the immediate question is not execution but preparation. Households with large digital-asset holdings may want cleaner basis records, wallet transfer histories, and documentation around staking, lending, and transaction fees in case Congress eventually enacts some version of these rules.
Taxpayers who have relied on rapid repurchases after harvesting crypto losses may also want to model how a wash-sale rule would affect year-end planning if it becomes law. For those with older reporting gaps, the proposed voluntary disclosure program is worth watching, though Treasury has not yet published terms because the bill has not been enacted.
And for taxpayers using stablecoins or digital assets for payments, it may be worth separating expectations from the bill text. The proposal does not appear to create a broad exemption for everyday crypto purchases. It offers narrower relief tied to qualifying fees and administrative treatment.
What to Watch Next
The first milestone has already happened: release by the House Ways and Means Committee on September 15. The next was committee approval, which CoinDesk reported passed 38-5 on September 16. That bipartisan vote improves the bill's visibility, but it does not guarantee House floor action or enactment.
24/7 Wall St. reported that no full House vote had been scheduled as of September 17 and that the measure could instead become part of a broader year-end tax package. CoinDesk also noted that Congress has limited time left in the session, which may constrain standalone action.
For now, the significance is clear even without enactment: Congress has moved beyond broad crypto policy debates and into specific tax mechanics. If that continues, the eventual federal rules may offer modest simplification for small qualifying fees while making loss harvesting and income recognition more like the rules affluent investors already navigate in other asset classes.
Sources
- First reported Congress Advances Crypto Tax Bill With Major Rule Changes — Blockonomi
- The House Advanced a Crypto Tax Bill 38 to 5. What the Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act Changes for Bitcoin Holders. — 24/7 Wall St.
- U.S. House's tax committee advances crypto tax bill in wake of Clarity Act loss — CoinDesk
After TAX is an independent publication. Articles are general information, not tax, legal or investment advice. Consult a licensed professional about your situation.
