What Is Form 1099-DA? Everything Crypto Holders Need to Know
The IRS introduced Form 1099-DA for crypto transactions. Learn who receives one, what it reports, what it misses, and what you need to do.
What Is Form 1099-DA?
Form 1099-DA is the IRS reporting form specifically designed for digital asset transactions. Starting with the 2025 tax year, centralized exchanges and brokers are required to send this form to both the IRS and to you. It reports your proceeds from selling, exchanging, or otherwise disposing of digital assets through their platform.
Think of it as the crypto equivalent of Form 1099-B, which stockbrokers have been filing for decades. The goal is to close the reporting gap that has existed in crypto since its inception.
Who Gets a 1099-DA?
You will receive a 1099-DA if you used a centralized exchange or broker that is classified as a "digital asset broker" under IRS regulations. This includes major platforms like Coinbase, Kraken, Gemini, and Binance.US.
Important: You will receive a separate 1099-DA from each exchange you used during the tax year. If you traded on three different platforms, expect three forms.
What Information Is on the 1099-DA?
The form includes the following for each disposition:
- Date of sale or exchange
- Proceeds (the value you received)
- Cost basis (if known to the broker)
- Gain or loss (if cost basis is available)
- Whether the gain is short-term or long-term
- Transaction type (sale, exchange, or other disposition)
Brokers are required to report proceeds in all cases. However, cost basis reporting is being phased in. For many transactions, especially those involving tokens transferred from external wallets, the broker may report "cost basis not available."
What Is NOT on the 1099-DA?
This is where it gets critical. The 1099-DA only covers transactions that occurred on the centralized exchange. It does not include:
- DeFi transactions (swaps on Uniswap, Curve, or any DEX)
- Liquidity pool deposits and withdrawals
- Staking rewards earned through DeFi protocols
- Cross-chain bridge transfers
- Airdrops received to your self-custody wallet
- NFT sales on marketplaces like OpenSea
- Peer-to-peer transactions
If you are active in DeFi, the 1099-DA represents only a partial picture of your crypto activity. Filing your taxes based solely on the 1099-DA would be incomplete and potentially trigger IRS scrutiny when they cross-reference on-chain data.
What Should You Do?
- Wait for your 1099-DAs. Exchanges are required to send them by February 15.
- Verify the information. Cross-check reported transactions against your own records. Errors do happen, especially around transfers between exchanges.
- Fill in the gaps. Use a tool like CryptoTax DeFi to import your full on-chain history, including all DeFi activity that the 1099-DA misses.
- Reconcile. Compare what the IRS sees (your 1099-DAs) against your complete transaction history. Fix any discrepancies before filing.
- File on time. The deadline for individual returns is April 15, 2027, for the 2026 tax year.
The IRS Matching Problem
The IRS will match the 1099-DA data they receive from exchanges against what you report on your tax return. If there is a discrepancy, whether you under-reported proceeds or claimed incorrect cost basis, you may receive a notice.
The most common trigger is DeFi activity that the 1099-DA does not capture. If you moved crypto off an exchange, swapped it on a DEX, and moved the proceeds back, the exchange only sees the outgoing transfer and the incoming deposit. The swap in between is invisible to them but not to you or the IRS if they audit on-chain records.
How CryptoTax DeFi Helps
Our reconciliation tool lets you upload your 1099-DA and compare it against your full on-chain history. We highlight missing transactions, flag cost basis gaps, and generate a discrepancy report you can review before filing. The entire process runs locally on your device for maximum privacy.