How to Report Crypto to the ATO for 2025–26

Australian crypto reporting starts by separating investment CGT events from ordinary-income and business events. Sales, swaps and spending can trigger CGT; staking and airdrop receipts can be income; genuine trading businesses use different rules. The 50% discount is calculated only after capital losses and only for eligible taxpayers and assets.

Reviewed September 1, 2026. This guide covers the Australian income year from July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026. It does not assume that every crypto row is a capital gain or that every reward belongs in one generic “other income” field.

First decide whether crypto is investment, business or income

Most individuals who acquire and hold crypto as an investment use the capital gains tax framework. A person carrying on a crypto trading, mining or exchange business may instead have ordinary income and trading-stock consequences. Frequency alone is not decisive: intention, repetition, organization, scale, records and a commercial business plan all matter.

A single wallet can also contain different streams. Crypto received for employment, services, staking or an airdrop may create ordinary income, while its later disposal can create a capital gain or loss. The acquisition value included in income usually becomes relevant to the later cost base.

The Australian investor-versus-trader guide explains the profile evidence that a report cannot infer from transaction count alone.

Sales, swaps and spending can be CGT events

For an investor, a CGT event can happen when crypto is sold for AUD, exchanged for another crypto asset, used to acquire goods or services, gifted or otherwise disposed of. A transfer between wallets owned by the same taxpayer is generally not a change of ownership, though crypto used as a network fee needs its own review.

The ATO's CGT overview expressly includes crypto assets among assets whose disposal can trigger CGT.

Calculate capital proceeds and cost base in AUD

Capital proceeds are the money or market value of property received. The cost base can include acquisition price and qualifying incidental costs. Both sides must be expressed in Australian dollars at the relevant time using a reasonable, documented value source.

Example: An investor buys 1 ETH for A$3,000 plus A$30 fee and later swaps it for tokens worth A$4,200, paying A$20 disposal fee. Before losses or discount, the simplified capital gain is A$4,200 minus the applicable A$3,030 cost base and qualifying disposal cost. The received tokens begin with their own acquisition record.

Do not use exchange “realized P&L” without checking transfer history, AUD valuation and tax classification. The Australian crypto CGT calculation guide shows the sequencing.

The 50% CGT discount is conditional

An eligible Australian-resident individual or trust may generally reduce a capital gain by 50% after holding the asset for at least 12 months. Companies do not receive the 50% discount. The precise acquisition and disposal dates, residency and entity are therefore required.

The discount is not applied trade by trade before losses. Current-year capital losses are applied first, then prior-year net capital losses, and only then the discount method is applied to eligible remaining gains. An asset held for exactly 12 months may not satisfy the “at least 12 months” day-count rule in every fact pattern; calculate dates carefully.

ATO educational material confirms that eligible Australian-resident investors may receive the discount after 12 months, but the return must still show the underlying capital gains.

Capital losses are not deductions against salary

A net capital loss can reduce capital gains in the same or later income years, but it does not directly reduce wages or ordinary staking income. Report the loss even when there is no gain to offset so it can be carried forward. Personal-use asset losses are disregarded.

Losses from scams, failed exchanges, lost keys and worthless tokens require evidence of ownership and the relevant CGT event; a falling price alone is not a realized capital loss. Preserve insolvency notices, wallet control, recovery attempts and legal rights.

Staking, airdrops, mining and payments

ATO guidance generally treats staking rewards and many airdrops as ordinary income at their AUD value when received. Crypto received by a business for goods or services is also non-cash consideration included in ordinary income. Mining can be a hobby or business depending on its facts.

• record the time the asset became controlled;
• record units and AUD market value;
• identify validator, protocol, employer or customer;
• separate ordinary-income value from later gain or loss;
• do not classify open futures positions or wallet snapshots as realized income.

Complex DeFi receipts require analysis of the legal and economic rights; a label such as “reward” is not enough. See the Australian staking tax example for the income-to-cost-base trail.

The personal-use asset exception is narrow

Crypto can be a personal-use asset when it is kept or used mainly to buy items for personal use or consumption. The ATO says quick acquisition and use is more consistent with personal use, while holding for investment or profit is not. Actual use up to disposal matters; original intention is relevant but not conclusive.

A capital gain on a genuine personal-use asset may be disregarded when it was acquired for A$10,000 or less, while a capital loss from a personal-use asset is disregarded. This is not a general A$10,000 crypto exemption.

Read the ATO's personal-use crypto guidance before applying the exception.

How to prepare the 2025–26 myTax figures

1. Reconcile every exchange and wallet through June 30, 2026.
2. Separate CGT, ordinary income, business and review items.
3. Calculate all current-year capital gains before discounts.
4. Apply current and carried-forward capital losses in the correct order.
5. Calculate the discount on eligible remaining gains.
6. Report total current-year gains, net capital gain and carried-forward net capital loss at the appropriate CGT labels.
7. Report staking, airdrop, service and business income in the correct income sections.
8. Retain the detailed disposal schedule even if myTax receives only totals.

For self-lodgers, the ordinary deadline for the 2025–26 return is October 31, 2026. Registered tax-agent dates depend on the taxpayer's circumstances and agent program; engage on time rather than assuming a universal May extension.

ATO crypto records and five-year retention

The ATO requires records for each crypto asset and transaction: receipts, dates, purpose, counterparty or address, exchange history, AUD value, costs and digital-wallet records. Its current crypto record-keeping page says to keep them for five years from the later of obtaining/preparing the record, completing the transaction or act, and the year of the CGT event. Keep them longer when needed for an amendment period or an asset still held.

Export regularly and before closing an exchange account. Keep original files, valuation sources, mappings, the final report and proof of lodgment. Never place seed phrases in the tax archive.

Australia crypto reporting FAQ

Disclaimer: This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute tax advice. For individual tax advice, consult a licensed tax professional.