The CRA considers digital assets the same as any other capital asset, and Canadians need to file their taxes accordingly.Manuel Ausloos/Reuters
The deadline for filing taxes in Canada for 2026 is April 30. As the big day approaches, Globe Advisor and Globe Investor have teamed up to offer advice on how to maximize returns, find credits and avoid an audit. The full series can be found here.
For Canadians with digital assets conceived to be untethered from the world of traditional finance, the 2026 tax season is a reminder that the Canada Revenue Agency prefers to keep things grounded. New reporting rules for cryptocurrency exchanges on the horizon may also leave investors facing new concerns.
What is not new is that the CRA considers digital assets as it does any other capital asset, and Canadians need to file their taxes accordingly.
“There are no special rules. There’s no special section of the Income Tax Act relating to cryptocurrency,” said Tristan Bagri, CPA, founder of TSB Chartered Professional Accountant Inc. in Surrey, B.C. He added that the CRA does, however, provide administrative guidance on how to apply general rules to crypto.
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Where some users fall afoul of the CRA, Mr. Bagri said, is in assuming that crypto earnings and losses are only taxable if transactions cross over into bank accounts or Canadian dollars.
“Any trade in and out of one cryptocurrency for another is going to be a taxable event, whether you have a gain or whether you have a loss,” he said.
Calculating earnings and losses can be difficult, however, particularly when assets may be held in different digital wallets and on different exchanges. Experts say it’s important that users keep careful records to ensure that cost basis calculations take into account transactions across different platforms.
Frequent traders also need to be aware that they could be considered by the CRA to be trading crypto as a business, said Demetre Vasilounis, a partner at Aird & Berlis in Toronto.
“If you’re in the business of trading crypto, then it’s actually considered business income and it’s treated differently for tax purposes,” he said. “For people who transact somewhat frequently, it’s really important to ensure that you have advisers, or you at least do your research, because this is such an amorphous area and there’s not a lot of guidance.”
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Investors with significant crypto portfolios may face another snag over filing requirements. Canadian residents are required to file a T1135 form with the CRA if the value of their foreign assets exceeds $100,000 at any point in the year. What is less certain is where crypto assets are deemed to be located.
While the CRA has indicated that crypto held on a Canadian exchange or in a wallet in Canada will not be considered a foreign asset, Mr. Bagri said more risk-averse clients may want to declare their crypto as foreign property to avoid potentially hefty fines.
A conservative approach in general is advisable, including in choosing regulated exchanges.
“If taxpayers really want to best protect themselves, especially in this brave new world of crypto, they want to at least show that they’ve done their due diligence,” Mr. Vasilounis said.
Canadian crypto holders may find it useful to simplify their holdings. Mr. Bagri said he advises clients looking to cut their compliance burdens to reduce the number of wallets and exchange accounts they maintain.
That may not appeal to crypto users attracted by the prospect of anonymous transactions, but Mr. Vasilounis noted that coming reporting requirements are already set to remove much of the anonymity of crypto transactions that pass through exchanges.
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Canada is set to implement a new OECD-agreed reporting framework next year to combat tax avoidance, requiring exchanges to report transactions starting in 2028.
The Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) will require Canadian cryptocurrency exchanges to report transaction details, including transfers to non-exchange wallet addresses, and users’ personal information.
The rule “represents a significant compliance and infrastructure build for exchanges, requiring enhanced due diligence processes and systems capable of capturing and reporting standardized transaction data,” Cynthia Del Pozo, North America general manager at crypto exchange Kraken, said in an e-mailed statement.
Apart from the annual reporting requirements that have yet to be implemented, the CRA already has existing broad investigative powers at its disposal that it can use “to compel entities and individuals to disclose additional information,” Mr. Vasilounis said.
Mr. Bagri offered one final piece of advice for crypto-asset holders: Don’t wait until the filing deadline.
“There can be a ton of work involved depending on how many platforms and trades you’ve done, so it can take some time,” he said.