On March 25, 2014, the Internal Revenue Service issued a ruling declaring that it will tax virtual currencies, such as Bitcoin, as property. This ruling could have significant effects on the way that consumers use Bitcoin. The implication of the ruling is that Bitcoin can no longer operate as an alternative form of currency because any transaction using Bitcoin as consideration will lead to a capital gain or loss for the person paying with Bitcoin. Bitcoin fluctuates drastically in value, which means that almost every transaction using Bitcoin will result in some sort of gain or loss which will now be taxable at capital gains rates. So, for example, if a person buys a Bitcoin for $10 and uses it to purchase an item for $15, he or she will be required to pay capital gains tax on the $5 increase in value.
The extreme value fluctuation, however, also explains why the IRS’s ruling may not be as extreme as some commentators suggest. It is, in fact, this value fluctuation which has led consumers to use Bitcoin primarily as an investment medium, like gold, silver, and other commodities, rather than as actual currency. The rapidly changing value of Bitcoin provides plenty of room for investors to try to maximize value by betting on the increase or decrease of the technological commodity.
There are also significant administrative restrictions which will make the IRS’s ruling difficult, if not impossible, to enforce, at least with respect to the average individual. In order to determine the amount of capital gains tax an individual owes to the U.S. government, he or she will have to carefully track all of the purchases made with Bitcoin over the course of the year. If individuals are making multiple purchases with Bitcoin, this will prove to be a very tedious and complicated requirement and is likely to discourage individuals from using Bitcoin as currency in the first place.
In addition to being difficult for individuals to monitor their capital gains, it will be just as complicated for the IRS to figure out how much it should be receiving in taxes from these individuals. Bitcoin’s original purpose was to provide a type of currency that was completely anonymous, which is why it has often been used in funding illegal transactions. The virtual wallets which house Bitcoins are not tied to individuals; this will make it very difficult for the IRS to monitor how much capital gains tax individuals owe on their Bitcoin transactions.
This administrative monitoring gap may provide a new venue for entrepreneurs to develop a platform which provides tracking of an individual’s basis in and purchases using Bitcoin in order to properly determine how much capital gains tax they owe in connection with Bitcoin transactions. But without this type of platform, it is unclear how the IRS will effectively enforce its new ruling.
Sources:
- http://money.cnn.com/2014/03/31/technology/irs-bitcoin/
- http://techcitynews.com/2014/03/28/bitcoin-is-property-not-currency-rules-irs/
- http://techcrunch.com/2014/03/30/bitcoin-slips-in-the-wake-of-the-irss-tax-decision/
- http://www.coindesk.com/irs-bitcoin-ruling-may-bright-side/
- http://www.inman.com/2014/03/31/irss-bitcoin-guidance-turns-every-transaction-into-a-reportable-capital-gain-or-loss-at-tax-time/
- http://www.irs.gov/uac/Newsroom/IRS-Virtual-Currency-Guidance
- http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/03/why-bitcoin-can-no-longer-work-as-a-virtual-currency-in-1-paragraph/359648/
- http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/mar/31/bitcoin-legally-property-irs-currency