Showing posts with label cryptocurrency and taxes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cryptocurrency and taxes. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 17, 2019

How to Protect Your Digital Assets


The world is changing, especially when it comes to how people make, spend, and store money. This is especially true in the case of Bitcoin and other online or cryptocurrency.  


All of these changes have many people wondering what will happen to their online funds after they die. They wonder if there is any way to protect these assets and to potentially pass them on to others.
The good news is that there are options available. You just have to know about them and then make them work for you.

Keep Careful Track of What You Have
First things first, make sure you are keeping careful track of what your digital assets actually are and the exact amounts. You’d be surprised at how many people are unsure about how much cryptocurrency they have saved up.

Cryptocurrency isn’t the only type of digital asset either. Many people store photos and other important mementos online, and it would be a shame to lose access to all of that once a person passes on.

Thus, the first step in making sure all digital assets, in all their forms, are available after death, is to keep careful track of what those assets are and where and how they are stored. It’s a good idea to keep a running list of your assets somewhere and to make sure that those you care about also have access to it.

Choose a Fiduciary
In addition to keeping careful track of your digital assets, go ahead and name someone as a digital fiduciary in your will. More and more people are taking this step of appointing someone to be in charge of their digital assets following death.

You may also want to make good use of any relevant tools offered by major sites. Facebook, for example, gives you the option of putting someone in charge of your account after your death, someone who would be able to shut down your account or take other steps, such as memorializing it, after your death.

In addition to following these helpful tips, speaking with a financial consultant about how best to manage your digital assets both now and after death can be extremely helpful.

Friday, March 15, 2019

How Cryptocurrency Affects Your Taxes

In today’s world, more and more people are dealing in cryptocurrency. Maybe you trade this currency. Or, maybe you even get paid in Bitcoin, Ethereum, or some other form of cryptocurrency. Whatever the case may be, if you are dealing in this type of currency, you need to understand how it affects your taxes.   


One of the first things to understand is that cryptocurrency is currency. And, just like any other form of currency, your use of it needs to be tracked and reported where applicable. That “where applicable” part is where people sometimes get confused.

In general, you’ll need to treat and report cryptocurrency as income in these situations:

l  If you’ve converted your cryptocurrency into a more common currency
l  If you’ve received free cryptocurrency coins
l  If you’ve made money from selling cryptocurrency
l  If you have used cryptocurrency to buy something

Fortunately, not every cryptocurrency transaction is taxable. Some situations in which your use of the currency is not taxable include:

l  Buying cryptocurrency
l  Purchasing cryptocurrency using your self-directed IRA
l  Gifting under $15,000 in cryptocurrency to a friend
l  Purchasing cryptocurrency with a Solo 401(k)

If you’re ever unclear on how to track or tax anything you have done involving cryptocurrency, don’t worry. A professional accountant should know the answer to your question or can at least find it out. While it is becoming possible to use online programs to track and report cryptocurrency transactions, nothing beats real, in-person help and advice.

The reason for this is that cryptocurrency is a new and confusing thing for many people, and everyone, including the IRS, is still trying to work out the kinks. However, in terms of taxation, the rules are pretty clear and easy to follow, but only if you have the right professional helping you to understand and follow them all.