TL;DR
- Cross-border oversight: The White House is reviewing a proposal to automatically exchange crypto asset tax data with 72 countries.
- Curbing capital flight: The measure seeks to disincentivize the use of offshore platforms to evade taxes and protect local exchanges.
- Dual regulatory grip: The international initiative will be added to the strict Form 1099-DA, which will enter into force in 2026 for domestic operations.
The U.S. administration’s digital tax policy could be on the verge of a radical transformation. The White House is reviewing a formal proposal from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) proposing the adoption of the CARF standard (Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework), a global rule created to eliminate the shadow over offshore cryptocurrency holdings.
The “Broker Digital Transaction Reporting” report was submitted on November 14. Its approval would grant the IRS full and automatic access to the financial data of U.S. citizens operating on platforms outside the country, aligning the United States with 72 other nations that have already committed to implementing this framework by 2028.
Although the regulator has not classified the measure as “economically significant” in terms of immediate impact on GDP, its effect on tax compliance would be profound, forcing taxpayers to report capital gains generated in foreign jurisdictions with greater rigor.
A Global Crackdown on Tax Evasion
Since late 2022, the CARF initiative has been promoted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Its main objective is to facilitate information exchange between countries to combat international tax evasion.
According to a policy recommendation document published by the White House in July, the adoption of the CARF standard is crucial to deter investors from moving their assets to offshore exchanges with the intention of hiding wealth, thereby preventing domestic platforms from being at a competitive disadvantage.
If Washington gives the green light, it will join a group of 50 nations—including Brazil, Spain, Mexico, and the United Kingdom—planning to activate the system in 2027, followed by another 23 in 2028. Simultaneously, the net is tightening on the domestic front: starting in January 2026, Form 1099-DA will take effect, requiring U.S. brokers to provide a detailed breakdown of every transaction.
Experts like Clinton Donnelly, a tax attorney specializing in digital assets, warn that the era of blockchain invisibility is coming to an end. With better data integration tools and the eventual adoption of the CARF standard, the IRS will have the capacity to scan networks at scale, identifying evaders for targeted audits and ending the perception that cryptocurrencies are a safe tax haven.
