Thought I would share my resources:
Here's my peer review of the new Coinbase tool:
https://steemit.com/bitcoin/@cryptotax/peer-review-of-coinbase-s-tax-report
Regarding Steem, the entire Part I-B – U.S. Tax Consequences of Performing Services for Crypto
https://steemit.com/money/@cryptotax/crypto-tax-series-e-book-february-2018-edition-u-s
Regarding the "gift" argument, it's a fair consideration to address, here is my take:
- To meet the threshold of a "gift" under U.S. purposes, it must have been giving for no consideration in return. A good general threshold in my view is, would the author receive anything if they write nothing? If the answer is no, the upvote is not a gift
- Contributing to the platform via authoring posts and identifying valuable content is most likely to be viewed as a service.
- The statutory economic benefit doctrine will result in taxation even if the author/curator functions are not treated as a "service." Same type of deal as forks/airdrops.
- Blockchain technology and peer to peer systems create situations that not every line in the tax code can address. There are many internet/software situations that are not fully comfortably addressed yet. But it's best not to get too creative/aggressive because the tax authorities can drop a hammer, and so drop it: retroactively.
Disclaimer (as with all my other tax articles): Disclaimer: This series contains general discussion of U.S. taxes in a developing and unclear area of tax law. As always, you should consult your own tax advisor in your jurisdiction to determine your specific situation as this is not personal advice; and consider any future guidance by the Congress/IRS after the date of this article. Under Circular 230 to the extent it applies, this article cannot be used or relied on to avoid any tax or penalties in the U.S., its States or any other jurisdictions. This post does not create a client relationship between the author and the reader.
Interesting, and very helpful. Thanks for the info.
Just to follow up with some statutory precedent to back up my claims, here is a court case where the IRS argued, and courts agreed, that "free money" sent to a radio show host was not a gift, rather taxable income, because the radio host's operations were a business and it was not practical/possible to get verification of the intent of each of the persons who sent the money.
https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/219/834/264681/
Disclaimer (as with all my other tax articles): Disclaimer: This series contains general discussion of U.S. taxes in a developing and unclear area of tax law. As always, you should consult your own tax advisor in your jurisdiction to determine your specific situation as this is not personal advice; and consider any future guidance by the Congress/IRS after the date of this article. Under Circular 230 to the extent it applies, this article cannot be used or relied on to avoid any tax or penalties in the U.S., its States or any other jurisdictions. This post does not create a client relationship between the author and the reader.