Carf Tax Rules Go Live On Jan. 1: What Crypto Users And Exchanges...

CARF data collection starts Jan. 1, 2026, in 48 jurisdictions, including the UK and EU, pushing crypto platforms to gather tax residency details and report transactions.

From Jan. 1, 2026, crypto users in 48 jurisdictions, including the United Kingdom and the European Union, will start to feel the first real effects of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD’s) Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) as early‑moving jurisdictions begin collecting standardized data from exchanges and platforms.

CARF requires in-scope providers to gather more detailed customer information, verify tax residency, and report users’ balances and transactions annually to their domestic tax authorities, which will then share that data across borders under existing information‑exchange agreements.

Lucy Frew, partner and head of the global Regulatory & Risk Advisory Group at international law firm Walkers, told Cointelegraph that CARF is a “game-changer,” and “set to reshape compliance for digital asset businesses and customers.”

However, in practice, she said it means tougher onboarding questions, more frequent account reviews, and far less room for users to assume that activity on overseas or offshore platforms is out of sight for tax agencies.

She added that firms that act now will be best positioned to manage risk and maintain trust, while those that delay could “face regulatory and reputational consequences.”

For exchanges, this is not a cosmetic compliance update but a structural change. Firms will need to bolt CARF requirements onto existing Know Your Customer and Anti-Money Laundering processes, redesign onboarding flows to capture tax‑residency and self‑certification data, and build or upgrade reporting systems.

Related: Tax agencies will double down on crypto before Bitcoin hits $1M

That will likely require new governance frameworks, staff training, and closer coordination between compliance, engineering, and support teams, particularly for platforms that operate across multiple CARF and non‑CARF jurisdictions.

UK‑licensed exchanges such as CoinJar sit at the center of this shift. Asher Tan, CEO and co-founder, told Cointelegraph that as CARF rules are phased in, users will be asked to provide additional tax residency information.

Source: CoinTelegraph