House Crypto Tax Bill Would Set Lower Penalties for Early Filers

A House proposal would give eligible taxpayers a time-limited way to correct past digital asset tax returns while paying the tax and interest they owe. Its scheduled penalties would depend on when people file and whether they certify that their violations were not fraudulent or willful.

The House Ways and Means Committee approved the Digital Asset Tax Certainty Act, H.R. 10357, by a 38-5 vote on Sept. 16. Under the proposal, Treasury would have 12 months after enactment to set up the disclosure program. Eligible taxpayers could amend returns for affected years during the 24 months after it opens.

Taxpayers could pay their liability at once or request an installment agreement. Treasury would need to accept the agreement and not later terminate it for that payment option to apply.

For returns filed in the program’s first 12 months, taxpayers who certify under penalty of perjury that their violations were neither fraudulent nor willful would qualify for the lowest scheduled penalty rates. The penalty would be 0% on the first $25,000 of additional tax attributable to digital asset violations in each covered tax year, then 5% on the amount above that threshold. Later filings and participants who do not make the certification would face higher scheduled rates. Treasury could waive some or all of a stated penalty.

The bill would also revise digital asset reporting rules and apply some tax rules used for traditional financial assets to digital assets. It would add a dedicated process alongside existing ways to correct returns, a subject covered in TokenPost’s earlier coverage of the proposed filing window.

The proposal remains pending ahead of full House consideration. It must pass both the House and Senate and complete the presidential stage of the legislative process before becoming law.