UK Crypto Tax Reporting: What HMRC Expects
HMRC does not treat cryptoassets as money or currency. For tax purposes they are chargeable assets, which means every sale, swap, or spend is a disposal that may give rise to a Capital Gains Tax charge. Staking rewards may be taxable as miscellaneous income if the activity does not amount to a trade. Airdrop treatment is fact-sensitive - whether Income Tax applies at receipt depends on the circumstances under which the tokens were received. Getting this right requires the correct matching rules and accurate record-keeping for your Self Assessment return.
Section 104 pooling, not FIFO
Unlike most countries, the UK does not use FIFO (First In, First Out) for crypto tax. HMRC requires a three-step matching process for each disposal:
- Same-day rule: If you buy and sell the same token on the same day, those transactions are matched first. This prevents you from selling and immediately rebuying to crystallise a loss while keeping the same position.
- Bed & breakfast rule (30-day): If you sell a token and repurchase the same token within 30 days, the sale is matched against the repurchase price rather than the pool. This is HMRC's anti-avoidance measure under section 106A TCGA 1992.
- Section 104 pool: Any unmatched disposals are matched against the weighted average cost of all your remaining holdings in that token. The pool updates every time you acquire or dispose of tokens.
Our Section 104 engine handles all three steps automatically and has been validated against six official HMRC worked examples (CRYPTO22251 through CRYPTO22256).
Capital Gains Tax rates
Since 30 October 2024, CGT rates on crypto disposals are 18% for basic-rate taxpayers and 24% for higher and additional-rate taxpayers. The Annual Exempt Amount is £3,000 for both 2025-26 and 2024/25. Net gains below this threshold are not liable to Capital Gains Tax. Capital losses can be carried forward to offset future gains once formally claimed.
Reporting thresholds and deadlines
You must report crypto disposals on your Self Assessment if net gains exceed the £3,000 Annual Exempt Amount. If you are already registered for Self Assessment, you must also complete the capital gains pages if total disposal proceeds exceed £50,000 in the tax year - even if you made an overall loss. Even if neither threshold applies, you may still need to file if HMRC has asked you to complete a return.
The UK tax year runs from 6 April to 5 April. For the 2025-26 tax year (6 April 2025 to 5 April 2026): notify HMRC by 5 October 2026 if you are not already in Self Assessment; file a paper return by 31 October 2026; file and pay online by 31 January 2027.
What goes on your Self Assessment
Capital gains from crypto disposals are reported on the SA108 Capital Gains Summary, specifically the Cryptoassets section (currently boxes 14 through 22, with exact boxes varying by tax year). Staking and mining income that does not amount to a trade, and airdrops where Income Tax applies at receipt, go on your SA100. Airdrop treatment is fact-sensitive - consult a tax adviser if you are unsure whether a particular airdrop is taxable at receipt. Our report maps every figure to the correct box and includes a filing table to simplify completion of your return.
FX conversion to GBP
Most exchanges report values in USD. We convert all transaction values to GBP using historical daily rates. HMRC requires sterling values throughout but does not mandate a specific exchange rate source; we use European Central Bank published rates as a consistent, auditable reference. The conversion happens before the matching engine runs, so your Section 104 pool is calculated entirely in pounds. On-chain wallet data is fetched directly in GBP where available.
NFTs and individual cost basis
Under HMRC guidance, NFTs should not be pooled under Section 104 because each NFT is unique. We track each NFT individually (e.g. CryptoPunk #12345 gets its own cost basis) rather than pooling all NFTs of the same collection together.
What's in the report
Your paid PDF includes a capital gains filing table mapped to the SA108 Cryptoassets section, a crypto income summary for your SA100, top assets by P&L, end-of-year holdings with pool cost, and a complete transaction audit trail. The disposal table includes a Match column showing whether each disposal was matched via same-day rule (SD), bed & breakfast (B&B), or the Section 104 pool (S104).
Bitcoin wallet support
Hold BTC in a hardware wallet? Add your Bitcoin addresses (P2PKH, P2SH, Bech32, or Taproot) and we'll scan your full transaction history and merge it with your exchange data. Up to 3 BTC addresses per report. All BTC values are converted to GBP using historical rates.
Supported exchanges
Upload your CSV from Coinbase (35+ transaction types), Binance (75+ operations), or Kraken (ledger format with refid pairing). All three calculators automatically apply Section 104 pooling when you select the UK. If your records came from an app-based exchange or fintech platform instead, see our Revolut, Crypto.com, Bitstamp, or OKX pages too.
Cryptoasset Reporting Framework (CARF)
The UK's Cryptoasset Reporting Framework regulations came into force on 1 January 2026. UK cryptoasset service providers must now collect customer tax-residence and transaction data. The first reporting window runs from 1 January 2027 to 31 May 2027, covering the calendar year 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2026. Under these rules, HMRC may receive reportable user and transaction data from in-scope UK providers. Your own Self Assessment obligation is unchanged by this.
Supported countries
We also generate country-specific reports for the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, and South Africa. Each report applies the correct matching rules, tax rates, and filing rules for that country.
UK crypto tax deadline
The online filing and payment deadline for the 2025-26 tax year is 31 January 2027. See UK crypto tax deadline for key dates, penalty details, and what you need to file.