New Cryptocurrency Guidance: Identifying Units, Hardforks, and Airdrops

Course Details
- smart_display Format
On-Demand
- signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
Intermediate
- work Practice Area
Tax Preparer
- event Date
Tuesday, January 14, 2020
- schedule Time
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
- timer Program Length
110 minutes
-
BARBRI is a NASBA CPE sponsor and this 110-minute webinar is accredited for 2.0 CPE credits.
-
BARBRI is an IRS-approved continuing education provider offering certified courses for Enrolled Agents (EA) and Tax Return Preparers (RTRP).
This course will discuss recently released IRS Revenue Ruling 2019-24 and the updated FAQs regarding taxation of cryptocurrency. With only Revenue Ruling 2014-21 for guidance, practitioners and holders of virtual currency welcomed the release of updated guidance on the taxation of cryptocurrency. Our adept panel will clarify the recent guidance, explain best practices to document these cumbersome transactions, and discuss the recent IRS initiative to identify and tax virtual currency activity.
Faculty

Mr. Stein specializes in tax controversies, as well as tax planning for individuals, businesses and corporations. For more than 25 years, he has represented individuals with sensitive issue civil tax examinations where substantial penalty issues may arise, and extensively advised individuals on foreign and domestic voluntary disclosures regarding foreign account and asset compliance matters. Mr. Stein is well respected for his expertise and judgment in handling matters arising from the U.S. government’s ongoing enforcement efforts regarding undeclared interests in foreign financial accounts and assets, including various methods of participating in a timely voluntary disclosure to minimize potential exposure to civil tax penalties and avoiding a criminal tax prosecution referral. Mr. Stein is a frequent lecturer at national and regional conferences on topics including tax compliance sensitive issues, IRS examinations, State and Federal worker classification issues, etc.

Mr. Toscher has been representing clients for more than 35 years before the Internal Revenue Service, the Tax Divisions of the U.S. Department of Justice and the Office of the United States Attorney, numerous state taxing authorities and in federal and state court litigation and appeals. Mr. Toscher enjoys a unique combination of solid criminal defense experience and extensive substantive tax experience to assist individuals and entities subject to sensitive government inquiries. He has considerable experience as lead counsel in defending criminal tax fraud investigations (both administrative and grand jury investigations) as well as in defending criminal tax prosecutions (both jury and non-jury). Mr. Toscher’s tax practice includes a wide array of substantive areas including income taxes, estate taxes, employment taxes, sales taxes and property taxes. He is routinely involved in sensitive issue or complex civil tax examinations and administrative appeals on behalf of wealthy individuals and their closely held entities as well as large corporations involving both domestic and foreign tax related issues.

Mr. Davis joined the firm in 2016 after more than 20 years in the public sector as a trial lawyer with extensive civil and criminal trial and appellate experience in both federal and state courts. He and his cases have been profiled by the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, People Magazine, as well as national legal publications such as Tax Notes and Law360. Mr. Davis represents individuals and closely held entities in criminal tax investigations and prosecutions, civil tax controversy and litigation, sensitive-issue or complex civil tax examinations and administrative tax appeals, and federal and state white-collar criminal investigations. He represents numerous cryptocurrency clients worldwide on civil and criminal tax matters, speaks frequently on cryptocurrency, criminal tax, and Bank Secrecy Act issues, deals with civil and criminal cannabis-related tax issues, and handles civil and criminal unreported foreign account and foreign-entities investigations and disclosures. In the appellate arena, Mr. Davis has argued cases before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals as both a prosecutor and defense counsel and was trial and appellate counsel on the attorney-client privilege case In re Grand Jury, which the U.S. Supreme Court heard in 2023. Mr. Davis frequently lectures on many topics throughout the country both in the private sector and as a federal prosecutor.
Description
In its short--5 page--Revenue Ruling 2019-24, the IRS attempts to answer questions surrounding receipt of cryptocurrency. Specifically, the Revenue Ruling asks and answers two questions:
- Is a hardfork subject to tax when the taxpayer doesn't receive new cryptocurrency?
- Is an airdrop following a hardfork subject to tax when the taxpayer receives new cryptocurrency?
The Revenue Ruling provides an explanation and a situational example of each question. The guidance explains that cryptocurrency from an airdrop is taxable when the taxpayer can exercise "dominion and control" over the currency, not necessarily when the transaction is recorded in the distributed ledger (i.e., blockchain).
In addition to this October 2019 Revenue Ruling, the IRS expanded its FAQ, adding 27 questions and answers concerning taxation of cryptocurrency. One pertinent answer is that a taxpayer can specifically identify units sold.
The Q&A also covers new information on gain/loss calculations, gifts of cryptocurrency, and charitable donations of these units.
Listen as our expert panel reviews the October 2019 IRS guidance on cryptocurrency, including calculating gains and losses, accurately handling the taxation of hardforks and airdrops, and the questions that remain surrounding taxation of these virtual units.
Outline
- Cryptocurrency: what we knew
- New Revenue Ruling 2019-24
- 27 new FAQs
- Current IRS focus on cryptocurrency
- Questions remaining
Benefits
The panel will review these and other important issues:
- When is a hardfork taxed?
- What is the state of the current IRS initiative to tax virtual currency transactions?
- How should holders document virtual transaction activity?
- How and when are airdrops taxed?
NASBA Details
Learning Objectives
After completing this course, you will be able to:
- Identify virtual transactions subject to IRS scrutiny
- Ascertain whether a hardfork is subject to taxation under Section 61
- Decide whether to recognize income from the donation of virtual currency
- Determine the basis in virtual currency units
- Field of Study: Taxes
- Level of Knowledge: Intermediate
- Advance Preparation: None
- Teaching Method: Seminar/Lecture
- Delivery Method: Group-Internet (via computer)
- Attendance Monitoring Method: Attendance is monitored electronically via a participant's PIN and through a series of attendance verification prompts displayed throughout the program
- Prerequisite: Three years+ business or public firm experience preparing complex tax forms and schedules, supervising other preparers or accountants. Specific knowledge and understanding of pass-through taxation, including taxation of partnerships, S corporations and sole proprietorships, qualified business income, net operating losses and loss limitations; familiarity with net operating loss carry-backs, carry-forwards and carried interests.

Strafford Publications, Inc. is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of Accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE Credits. Complaints regarding registered sponsons may be submitted to NASBA through its website: www.nasbaregistry.org.

Strafford is an IRS-approved continuing education provider offering certified courses for Enrolled Agents (EA) and Tax Return Preparers (RTRP).
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