How to find a Bitcoin-friendly CPA: 10 questions to ask before you hire

Plenty of tax preparers have never seen a self-custody wallet. Here is how to check credentials, what to ask on the first call, and what a good answer sounds like.

Why "any CPA" isn't always enough

The IRS treats Bitcoin and other digital assets as property, not currency. That means selling, spending or swapping coins can create a gain or a loss you have to report, and mining or staking rewards count as income. The IRS also asks every individual filer a yes-or-no question about digital assets on the front of the return.

The hard part usually isn't the form. It's the records. Self-custody leaves no single statement, so someone has to piece together what you bought, when, for how much, and which wallets the coins moved through. A preparer who has only handled stock brokerage statements may not know where to start.

Brokers and exchanges are also starting to send Form 1099-DA. The IRS says brokers report gross proceeds for transactions from January 1, 2025, and basis on certain transactions from January 1, 2026. The rules cover brokers that take possession of your assets, so activity in a wallet you control may not appear on any form. A good preparer knows that gap exists.

Step one: check the credential

The IRS says anyone can be a paid tax return preparer as long as they have a Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN), and that skill levels vary a lot. The people who can represent you before the IRS are generally CPAs, enrolled agents and attorneys. Before you hire anyone:

• Look the person up on your state board of accountancy (for a CPA), the IRS's directory of preparers with credentials (for an enrolled agent or other credentialed preparer), or your state bar (for an attorney).
• Ask for a PTIN. A paid preparer must put theirs on your return.
• Be wary of anyone who won't sign the return they prepare. The IRS warns about unethical "ghost" preparers.

Our directory lists professionals who say publicly that they work with Bitcoin holders, and we don't check licenses. Do that step yourself.

10 questions to ask on the first call

About their experience

1. How many clients with self-custodied Bitcoin do you work with each year? You want a real number, not "a few." If you're one of their first, it's fine to know that going in.
2. Which situations have you handled: mining, staking, multisig, an old exchange that shut down, an inheritance? Match their answer to your own situation.
3. Will you sign my return and put your PTIN on it? If the answer is anything but a plain yes, keep looking.

About how they handle your records

4. Who pulls together my transaction history, you or me? This decides both the fee and the workload. Ask what they need from you, and in what format.
5. What do you do when my cost basis is missing? A good answer describes a documented method and says what stays uncertain. A weak answer is one guessed number.
6. How do you treat moves between my own wallets? The IRS says transferring coins between wallets you own is generally not itself a transaction, unless you paid the network fee with digital assets. Ask how they keep those moves from being counted as sales.
7. How do you decide which coins I sold, and how do you document it? The IRS lets taxpayers identify specific units if they keep the right records, and brokers now report wallet by wallet. Ask which method they'd use for you and why.

About the working relationship

8. How will you reconcile any Form 1099-DA I receive against my own records? The two can differ, and someone has to explain why.
9. What happens if the IRS writes to me about this return? Ask whether representation is included or billed separately, and who would handle it.
10. How do you charge, and what's included? Get it in writing: flat fee, hourly or per form, and whether cleanup of old years costs extra.

What to bring to the first call

• A list of every wallet, exchange and platform you've used, including ones you've closed. Don't write down seed phrases.
• Exchange exports and any tax forms you've received, including a 1099-DA if you got one.
• Purchase dates, amounts and prices where you have them.
• Last year's return, so they can see what was reported before.

If you mine

Miners have a separate set of questions. IRS Notice 2014-21 says the fair market value of mined coins on the day you receive them is gross income, and the IRS says mining income is reported on Schedule 1, or on Schedule C if you run it as a business. If it's a business, net earnings may also be subject to self-employment tax. Whether your setup counts as a business, which equipment and power costs are deductible, and how hosting fees are treated are all questions for a CPA who has handled mining before. Ask them about those directly, and see our mining-focused listings below.

Planning for what your family would face one day? Our guide on leaving Bitcoin to your heirs covers the estate side, including questions for an attorney.

Further reading

These are published by the IRS. We link to them for background and don't control their content.

• IRS: Digital assets
• IRS: Frequently asked questions on virtual currency transactions
• IRS Notice 2014-21: Tax treatment of virtual currency (includes mining)
• IRS: Choosing a tax professional