[jermaustin1]

It is the exact same as exchanging mutual funds at your brokerage.

Like an exchange I did just this morning: $10,000 VHDYX -> $10,000 VFIAX.

It creates two orders a sell and a buy. I'm taxed capital gains on the $10k sale (about $600 gain) and the buy has nothing to do with it, until I sell it in 5 years.

[icedchai]

The difference is brokerages will actually issue you a 1099 form. The crypto exchange sites won't.

Let's not kid ourselves... Nobody is going to be reporting crypto-to-crypto exchanges.

[xur17]

If you want to be compliant, and not commit tax fraud, you will. Just because it will require some effort to track you down doesn't make it ok.

[icedchai]

You and I may be compliant. The point is, most people won't.

[sebleon]

Saavy consumers will definitely evade this. However, this tax is likely targeted at finance companies looking to “get into crypto” and will do everything by the book

[wbl]

How many convictions will it take?

[justblendin]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calculus_of_negligence

Premeditated tax-negligence is fraud according to the IRS, but the thinking remains.

How many convictions will it take? Depends on how much is on the line.

[gamblor956]

If you substantially understate[1] your income (including crypto-exchange income), the statute of limitations on your tax return never starts running. That means the IRS has until the end of time to audit you and assess penalties and back interest.[2]

[1] Currently that means excluding items individually or collectively worth more than 25% of the gross income actually stated on the return.

[2] If your omission of crypto-currency income is within 25% of your actual stated gross income, the IRS only has 6 years to audit you and assess penalties...unless they decide that the omission is a deliberate attempt to evade taxes, in which case the unlimited statute of limitations could apply.

[newfoundglory]

Wow, that's a lot of potential reward for someone inside the exchanges if they can put together some information to report to the IRS - https://www.investopedia.com/articles/taxes/09/reporting-tax...

[heisenbit]

It is not so that the ledger is encrypted.

[nonbel]

There is no sale for dollars involved in the OP's scenario. Is there an actual sell in your scenario or is it "virtual"?

[jermaustin1]

There is no "real" sell on Vanguard to go from one fund to another, but regulations require them to mark it as a sale, and to denote the cost basis of the sale.

[nonbel]

Interesting, thanks.

[notyourday]

It also will be marked-to-market

[jermaustin1]

Interesting, I have never heard that term. I'm pretty uneducated in finance. I just have done great on my Vanguard Mutual Funds, and I keep them going.

[sowbug]

Bartering is taxable as well. This was the case even before computers were invented. See, e.g., https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/bartering-produces-taxable-inco...

[saalweachter]

To use the programming lingo that I hope a majority of HN users still recognize, they're like a sequence point.