What if Bitcoin was a currency?

[Alley]

What would be the difference?  Tax laws?

[durrrr]

public acceptence and knowledge of it being a currency and people using it day to day. and also taxing would be a huge thing that idk how they would do it

[hilariousandco]

It is a currency. Do you mean if it was fully adopted as a main currency or something?

[Alley]

I mean according to the IRS.

[durrrr]

It is a currency. Do you mean if it was fully adopted as a main currency or something?

i was assuming he ment adopted as like a world wide used currency. where you could use it anywhere

[MoonShadow]

I mean according to the IRS.

As opposed to being considered property?  Well, if Bitcoin were a currency under US law, it'd be comparable to the Euro.  Paying employees in foreign currencies, such as the Euro, within the United States carries different taxation rules than property, so the taxes (in general) would be higher than it is for property.

[Joshuar]

Bitcoin isn't stable enough to be a currency..Bitcoin is just a prototype, once a better coin comes out or maybe it's out already? will replace Bitcoin and render it useless. Now that new coin will be a currency.

[hilariousandco]

I mean according to the IRS.

Well then the laws would probably be the same as for what we currently have for fiat taxation.

[CoinRocka]

Bitcoin isn't stable enough to be a currency..Bitcoin is just a prototype, once a better coin comes out or maybe it's out already? will replace Bitcoin and render it useless. Now that new coin will be a currency.

good luck new coin 

[MoonShadow]

Bitcoin isn't stable enough to be a currency..Bitcoin is just a prototype, once a better coin comes out or maybe it's out already? will replace Bitcoin and render it useless. Now that new coin will be a currency.

Good luck with that.

[lynn_402]

Bitcoin isn't stable enough to be a currency..Bitcoin is just a prototype, once a better coin comes out or maybe it's out already? will replace Bitcoin and render it useless. Now that new coin will be a currency.

What's making it unstable has nothing to do with how Bitcoin works, it's simply because of lack of trading volume which causes instability.
Prices fluctuation are perfectly normal for a technology this young, and I don't see any altcoin behaving differently.

[hilariousandco]

Bitcoin isn't stable enough to be a currency..Bitcoin is just a prototype, once a better coin comes out or maybe it's out already? will replace Bitcoin and render it useless. Now that new coin will be a currency.

What's making it unstable has nothing to do with how Bitcoin works, it's simply because of lack of trading volume which causes instability.
Prices fluctuation are perfectly normal for a technology this young, and I don't see any altcoin behaving differently.

It's panic sellers that make it unstable, but it's to be expected with something as relatively new as Bitcoin. Hopefully it'll become stable at some point, but even fiat currencies fluctuate.

[lynn_402]

but even fiat currencies fluctuate.

Yep, even with all the political and economical power, and all the armies in the world, engaged at keeping their values stable. No wonder Bitcoin fluctuates

[twiifm]

To answer the OP.   If you kept cash in your mattress it doesn't get taxed.   You get taxed as income when you first receive it.

If you keep money in assets those assets may get capital gains tax or ordinary income depending on how long you hold

[redwhite037]

So would the taxes be worse if bitcoin was considered property or a currency? I've been pondering this lately.

[twiifm]

So would the taxes be worse if bitcoin was considered property or a currency? I've been pondering this lately.

You pay taxes on income.   Capital gains have cap at 15% I believe.   Ordinary income is based on tax bracket.

We are taxed in dollars.   If you bought a bitcoin a year ago for $1 and now its $600.  If you sell it you get taxed on $599 as ordinary income.  But tax rate depends on all your other income combined

If you don't sell it there is a cap of 15%. 

[sergio]

Bitcoin is a currency, it is by design and by definition of the creator.

So far it is the best we have, it could be more anonymous, and we could have decentralized exchanges.

As far as the IRS they can call it anything they wish, it odes not matter bitcoin goes beyond the jurisdiction of the IRS, and there is no government that rules for the entire planet. Bitcoin does not know about borders, it does not care about politics, it is base on math applied using software, using the Internet.

As far as I am concerned the IRS/GOV could rule that 1 + 1 =3, but for me it would still be 2, only legally it would be 3, then math teachers would have to put a disclaimer on the math exams saying "the law for exam purposes does not apply".
The same is happening to bitcoin, it is a currency but not legally.

The US government will never allow a competing currency, specially a better, and that is exactly what bitcoin is, so they relabel bitcoin so it is by law not a currency.

This is really bad, the gov/IRS is basically saying "you are not allowed to have a competing currency and must pay the inflation, war tax"

Well my guest is that in the spirit of satoshi, and freedom most of us will not subject ourself to the inflation tax and to the IRS nonsense, the bookkeeping will be a nightmare.

A better law would be something like saying " all laws that apply to the dollar apply to bitcoin" and level the playing field.

With the dollar when it appreciates or depreciates in value you do not have to pay/unpay additional taxes, well it normally devalues itself and it can not be claim as a loss for tax purposes.

One of the purposes of Bitcoin was to avoid the inflation tax created by the abuses of the debasement of the dollar, euro, and most fiat currencies (possibly all gov fiat).

This new tax is to subsidize the dollar, and the dollar subsidizes the FED, which it subsidize  the  Central Banks, in other words is a tax for the welfare for the very rich, one of the very thing bitcoin was designed to avoid.

The good news is that the IRS property tax is not enforceable. Therefore  my guess is that the IRS will go after the big money by harassing  companies that deal with bitcoins, eventually this will hurt the USA since if they get overly aggressive it will drive the good money out of the US and that is something that they do not want, what they want is to protect the dollar, encourage business to transact only in dollars, and collect as much tax as possible.

Only time will tell what will happen, this could help drive the price of darkcoin up.

The volatility of bitcoin will go away with time, if you notice now bitcoin is a lot less volatile than its early years.

The US constitution allows for competing currencies, then why is it that the US government breaks the law by not allowing them.

Some day the IRS may want to tax my "cumpa coin".

[BitEscrow]

 Good luck. Sadly people hear are too stupid to realize they don't make the rules. Wake up you stubburn cunts, you live off the govs. rules. Pay your taxes you cheap fucks.

[roslinpl]

What would be the difference?  Tax laws?

Imagine digitalizing a $ - will be same as bitcoin as a currency.


Anyway, bitcoin will stay cryptocurrency forever I really hope!

[durrrr]

bitcoin will be a currency someday maybe not exactly like the usd but it will be a widely used an accepted form of payment that can easily be converted to fiat