Senate Tax Bill Would Free Stablecoin Purchases While Bitcoin Keeps Its IRS Paperwork

A new Senate tax proposal would draw a bright line between spending dollar-backed stablecoins and spending Bitcoin.

Under the ADAPT Act released by Sen. Steve Daines on September 30, a purchase made with a qualifying U.S. dollar stablecoin could avoid gain-or-loss recognition beginning in 2027. The same purchase made with Bitcoin would still require the buyer to calculate and report a capital gain or loss.

That distinction goes directly at one of crypto’s most stubborn payment problems. Under current IRS guidance, using a digital asset to buy goods or services is a disposition.

The taxpayer must compare the asset’s fair-market value at the time of payment with its cost basis. A higher value creates a reportable capital gain, while a lower value creates a loss subject to the usual tax rules.

The IRS applies that framework regardless of how small the purchase is. A cup of coffee can therefore create a recordkeeping event, and the buyer still needs records showing when the coins were acquired and what they cost.

The 56-page Aligning Digital Assets with Principles of Taxation Act would change that treatment for certain stablecoins, but it would not create a general exemption for Bitcoin payments.

According to CryptoSlate’s review of the bill text, the token would need to be a qualified U.S. dollar stablecoin issued by a permitted payment stablecoin issuer under the GENIUS Act.

A foreign-issued token could qualify through Office of the Comptroller of the Currency registration or a Treasury determination that its home-country rules are comparable. The stablecoin would also need to appear in Treasury’s latest eligible-token report, and the taxpayer generally must have acquired it within 3% of one dollar.

Treasury would publish that report at least once every three months. The list would cover qualifying stablecoins that traded within the required range during the prior 12 months.

The proposal does not erase ordinary sales taxes or other obligations tied to the purchase. It simply says the buyer would not recognize a capital gain or loss on the covered stablecoin used at checkout.

The timing is notable because stablecoins are becoming easier for institutional finance to measure and monitor. Bloomberg’s Michael McDonough said the Terminal now carries an hourly updated stablecoin dashboard using Allium Labs data.

Our stablecoin dashboard is now live and updating hourly at RWAS<GO> on @TheTerminal. Thanks to @ethanyish and the entire @AlliumLabs team for providing the underlying data! https://t.co/RmXkUIigFY pic.twitter.com/R0umGq30Un

— Michael McDonough (@M_McDonough) September 30, 2026

Allium co-founder Camran Khosravi separately confirmed that the stablecoin data refreshes hourly on the Bloomberg Terminal.

Pretty awesome having stablecoin data from @AlliumLabs refreshed hourly on the bloomberg terminal.

RWAS <GO> for anyone curious pic.twitter.com/vu2LD7HdEy

— Camran Khosravi (@CamKhosravi) September 30, 2026

The bill includes a narrower break for network fees. Digital assets used to pay qualifying transaction costs could avoid gain-or-loss recognition when the total value used for those costs is $10 or less.

Base fees, gas fees and priority fees would count.

That would help with the small amount of Bitcoin used to pay a network fee, but not the Bitcoin sent to the merchant. The purchase itself would remain a taxable disposition.

The stablecoin relief would also exclude traders, brokers and dealers, and taxpayers would still need records showing which payments met the rules. Treasury would retain authority over implementation, including the eligible-token list and reporting mechanics.

The proposal would take effect for covered transactions beginning January 1, 2027. It remains a bill, not current law, so today’s IRS treatment stays in force unless Congress acts.

If enacted, the practical message would be hard to miss: Congress is considering treating qualifying stablecoins more like digital cash at checkout, while leaving Bitcoin in the investment-property tax framework. That may remove friction for stablecoin payments, but it would also make the tax gap between the two assets more explicit than ever.

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