A transfer moves crypto between wallets or accounts you control and is not taxable. A disposal is a sale, swap, spend, or gift to someone else and is taxable. Reconciliation is the process of telling them apart.
Transfer: same owner, both sides, not taxable, basis carries. Disposal: ownership changes or the asset changes, taxable, gain or loss measured from basis.
Software that fails to match a withdrawal to a deposit records a phantom sale at zero basis. Most inflated crypto tax bills come from transfers misread as disposals.
No. It is a transfer. The fee you pay to move it is a small disposal of the fee amount, and the basis of the coins carries over.
Source: IRS FAQ on virtual currency transactions (transfers)
Last reviewed September 17, 2026. Tax rules change; confirm current law before acting.
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