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Need help calculating your transactions to report to the IRS?
Simply import your transaction data to Summ (formerly Crypto Tax Calculator) and let it do the hard work for you.
Summ provides tax reports for all previous years at no extra charge, helping ensure that you get your reporting up-to-date and compliant, even if you’re behind on previous years.
In most cases of buying and selling cryptocurrency as a retail investor, you are participating in investing rather than trading. The two are treated differently for tax purposes.
The key difference between investing and trading – along with the different tax treatments, is how losses generated in the crypto-activity can be used.
In their guidance, HMRC have explicitly stated that they would expect it to be exceedingly rare that any crypto-activity constituting buying & selling crypto would be classified as “trading”.
If you are uncertain, speak to a tax advisor as there are always exceptions, including but not limited to, developing tokens and large scale mining.
You can be liable for both capital gains and income tax depending on the type of cryptocurrency transaction, and your individual circumstances. For example, you might need to pay capital gains on profits from buying and selling cryptocurrency, or pay income tax on interest earned when holding crypto.
The ATO's crypto data-matching program pulls identity and transaction data from exchanges and reconciles it against your return. Assume the ATO can see your activity.
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Wondering whether the ATO knows about your crypto? Assume yes. The era of flying under the radar is over.
The ATO obtains data from crypto designated service providers (exchanges and similar) to identify buyers and sellers and quantify their transactions. The current program spans the 2014-15 through 2025-26 financial years, with data collected annually (around April to July). The ATO expects to capture data on roughly 700,000 to 1.2 million individuals and entities each year.
Data items include:
This feeds the ATO's pre-fill and reconciliation. If what you lodge doesn't match what an exchange reported, expect a prompt or a review.
The ATO has been data-matching crypto since 2019 and has steadily widened the net. Combined with AUSTRAC's AML/CTF regime (every Australian exchange must register, apply KYC, and report), the ATO has a detailed view of who is transacting and how much.
The belief that crypto is untraceable is a myth. The blockchain is a public ledger; on-chain activity is permanent and analysable. Centralised on-ramps apply KYC, linking real identities to wallet addresses. DeFi transactions are still taxable events in Australia, and the absence of a 1099-style form just puts the record-keeping on you. Summ reconstructs cost base and AUD values across DeFi activity.
Mixing services don't make activity tax-invisible. Authorities can see that you accessed a mixer, and chain analysis can often trace flows. Using one to evade tax is a poor strategy and may carry separate legal risk.
If your reporting is compliant, a review is nothing to fear. You'd typically disclose the wallets and exchange accounts you control and, for each transaction, the acquisition date and AUD value, the disposal date and AUD proceeds, and your cost-base method. Doing this by hand across hundreds of transactions is where people come unstuck; Summ automates it.
The ATO generally looks more favourably on taxpayers who come forward voluntarily before being contacted. You can amend prior returns to include missed crypto income or gains, gather your records (wallet addresses, transaction IDs, dates, AUD amounts), and pay any shortfall, usually with reduced penalties for voluntary disclosure. A registered tax agent can help.
Underreporting can attract administrative penalties (for failing to take reasonable care, or for a position that isn't reasonably arguable), plus the general interest charge on the shortfall. Deliberate evasion is far more serious. The cheaper, calmer path is to reconcile against your exchange data and lodge correctly the first time.
This article is general information, not tax advice. If you're behind on multiple years, a registered tax agent can manage a voluntary disclosure for you.
The information provided on this website is general in nature and is not tax, accounting or legal advice. It has been prepared without taking into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on this information, you should consider the appropriateness of the information having regard to your own objectives, financial situation and needs and seek professional advice. Summ (formerly Crypto Tax Calculator) disclaims all and any guarantees, undertakings and warranties, expressed or implied, and is not liable for any loss or damage whatsoever (including human or computer error, negligent or otherwise, or incidental or Consequential Loss or damage) arising out of, or in connection with, any use or reliance on the information or advice in this website. The user must accept sole responsibility associated with the use of the material on this site, irrespective of the purpose for which such use or results are applied. The information in this website is no substitute for specialist advice.
James Edwards has been active in the cryptocurrency industry for over 10 years. He is an avid user of DeFi and believes in the promise of a user-owned and operated web.
His expertise as a cryptocurrency journalist has seen him contribute to publications such as Nasdaq, CoinMarketCap and CoinTelegraph.
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The ATO lets you claim a capital loss on lost, stolen, or hacked crypto with evidence of ownership. Exchange collapses are treated differently. Here is the FY26 framework, current to the ATO's 2025 guidance updates.
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NFTs and stablecoins follow the same CGT rules as other crypto assets in Australia. Here's how the ATO taxes them, with worked examples for common scenarios.
Active crypto traders operate under a different tax reality than long-term investors. The proposed CGT changes affect them less than the headlines suggest, but the structural questions are more complex.
Crypto margin, perpetuals, and futures sit in an ATO guidance gap. Here's how to apply the general framework for FY26, including investor vs trader, interest, liquidations, TOFA, and offshore venues.
Import your transactions and generate a free report preview.
Blog
13 September 2020
X
Min read
The ATO's crypto data-matching program pulls identity and transaction data from exchanges and reconciles it against your return. Assume the ATO can see your activity.
James Edwards
This tax guide is regularly updated: Last Update
....
July
25
2025
Wondering whether the ATO knows about your crypto? Assume yes. The era of flying under the radar is over.
The ATO obtains data from crypto designated service providers (exchanges and similar) to identify buyers and sellers and quantify their transactions. The current program spans the 2014-15 through 2025-26 financial years, with data collected annually (around April to July). The ATO expects to capture data on roughly 700,000 to 1.2 million individuals and entities each year.
Data items include:
This feeds the ATO's pre-fill and reconciliation. If what you lodge doesn't match what an exchange reported, expect a prompt or a review.
The ATO has been data-matching crypto since 2019 and has steadily widened the net. Combined with AUSTRAC's AML/CTF regime (every Australian exchange must register, apply KYC, and report), the ATO has a detailed view of who is transacting and how much.
The belief that crypto is untraceable is a myth. The blockchain is a public ledger; on-chain activity is permanent and analysable. Centralised on-ramps apply KYC, linking real identities to wallet addresses. DeFi transactions are still taxable events in Australia, and the absence of a 1099-style form just puts the record-keeping on you. Summ reconstructs cost base and AUD values across DeFi activity.
Mixing services don't make activity tax-invisible. Authorities can see that you accessed a mixer, and chain analysis can often trace flows. Using one to evade tax is a poor strategy and may carry separate legal risk.
If your reporting is compliant, a review is nothing to fear. You'd typically disclose the wallets and exchange accounts you control and, for each transaction, the acquisition date and AUD value, the disposal date and AUD proceeds, and your cost-base method. Doing this by hand across hundreds of transactions is where people come unstuck; Summ automates it.
The ATO generally looks more favourably on taxpayers who come forward voluntarily before being contacted. You can amend prior returns to include missed crypto income or gains, gather your records (wallet addresses, transaction IDs, dates, AUD amounts), and pay any shortfall, usually with reduced penalties for voluntary disclosure. A registered tax agent can help.
Underreporting can attract administrative penalties (for failing to take reasonable care, or for a position that isn't reasonably arguable), plus the general interest charge on the shortfall. Deliberate evasion is far more serious. The cheaper, calmer path is to reconcile against your exchange data and lodge correctly the first time.
This article is general information, not tax advice. If you're behind on multiple years, a registered tax agent can manage a voluntary disclosure for you.
You can be liable for both capital gains and income tax depending on the type of cryptocurrency transaction, and your individual circumstances. For example, you might need to pay capital gains on profits from buying and selling cryptocurrency, or pay income tax on interest earned when holding crypto.
We have an annual subscription which covers all previous tax years. If you need to amend your tax return for previous years you will be covered under the one payment.
Yes, Summ (formerly Crypto Tax Calculator) is designed to generate accountant friendly tax reports. You simply import all your transaction history and export your report. This means you can get your books up to date yourself, allowing you to save significant time, and reduce the bill charged by your accountant. You can discuss tax scenarios with your accountant, and have them review the report.
We do! We have integrations with many NFT marketplaces, as well as categorisation options for any NFT related activity (minting, buying, selling, trading).
The platform is free to use immediately upon signup, allowing you to import your transactions and take advantage of our smart suggestion and auto-categorisation engine, portfolio tracking, DeFi and NFT support. For access to reports, the tax loss harvest tool or chat and priority support, you will need to upgrade to the appropriate paid plan.
