Crypto's Long-Sought 'De Minimis' Tax Break Gets a House Markup This Week

In brief

• House lawmakers will consider the Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act on Wednesday.
• The bill covers transaction fees, stablecoins, staking, mining, lending, and wash sales.
• Proposed exemptions for small fees and simplified accounting would begin in 2028.

The House Ways and Means Committee will consider legislation Wednesday that would exempt some crypto transaction fees from capital-gains calculations and apply new federal tax rules to stablecoins, staking, mining and digital asset trading.

Committee Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., introduced the 114-page Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act, or H.R. 10357. The committee has scheduled its markup for 10 a.m. Eastern on Sept. 16.

During a markup, committee members debate a bill, propose amendments, and decide whether to advance it to the full House.

The legislation would create a “de minimis” exemption for qualifying network or transaction fees of $10 or less. De minimis refers to an amount considered too small to require standard tax treatment.

Paying a blockchain fee with crypto can create a taxable event because the IRS treats digital assets as property. The exemption would allow taxpayers to disregard gains or losses on eligible fees.

Lawmakers examined small-transaction exemptions and six other crypto tax proposals during a June hearing on digital asset taxation.