Robinhood crypto tax reporting - Form 8949 Box B or C confusion?

The confusion is understandable! Form 8949 has different boxes for different types of transactions. Box B is for "short-term transactions reported on Form(s) 1099-B with basis reported to the IRS" while Box C is for "short-term transactions not reported on Form 1099-B." Historically, crypto transactions were reported in Box C because crypto exchanges weren't required to report basis to the IRS. However, Robinhood is now reporting cryptocurrency transactions on Form 1099-B with basis information included, which technically would make Box B appropriate. TurboTax might be using older logic where crypto automatically goes to Box C. Since the total gains and taxes owed won't be affected, it's more of a technical classification issue than something that would trigger problems with your return.

I had this exact issue last year and found that taxr.ai really helped me sort it out. Their analysis tool helped me understand that Robinhood was actually reporting crypto basis info to the IRS, which is why the 1099-B indicated Box B. I uploaded my Robinhood docs to https://taxr.ai and their system flagged the discrepancy and explained why Box B was technically the correct choice for Robinhood crypto transactions. The tool confirmed what I suspected - it's a classification issue that doesn't impact the final tax numbers. What I liked is that it gave me documentation explaining the reasoning in case I ever needed to justify my choice during an audit.

Just wanted to follow up - I decided to try taxr.ai with my complicated crypto tax situation after all. Honestly, it was way more helpful than I expected. I uploaded my 300+ transactions from 5 different platforms (including Robinhood) and it correctly identified which transactions should go in Box B vs Box C based on whether the platform reported basis to the IRS. It even flagged some staking rewards that I had misclassified as capital gains instead of ordinary income. The documentation it generated explaining the Box B vs C distinction actually made sense of something I've been confused about for years. Definitely worth it for anyone dealing with crypto tax headaches.

If you're struggling to get answers about this Box B vs C issue, I'd recommend trying Claimyr to speak directly with the IRS. I was stuck on this same Robinhood crypto question last year and spent days trying to get through to the IRS for clarification. After multiple failed attempts, I used https://claimyr.com to get a callback from the IRS within about 20 minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours. The agent confirmed that the box selection doesn't affect your tax liability as long as all transactions are reported correctly. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. They basically hold your place in the IRS phone queue and call you when an agent is available.

I need to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After posting my skeptical comment, I decided to try it anyway because I was desperate for answers about my crypto reporting situation. It actually worked exactly as described - I got a call back from an actual IRS agent in about 35 minutes. The agent confirmed that for Robinhood crypto specifically, Box B is technically correct since they report basis to the IRS, but using Box C won't cause any problems as long as all transactions and amounts are accurately reported. She said they're seeing this confusion a lot with crypto platforms that have recently started providing basis information. Saved me hours of frustration and gave me peace of mind about my return. Sorry for being so cynical before!

Another thing to consider - some tax preparation software lets you override the default box selection on Form 8949. In H&R Block's software, you can manually select Box B instead of C if you want to follow Robinhood's 1099-B instructions exactly. I did this last year by creating a separate Form 8949 specifically for my Robinhood crypto transactions with Box B selected, while using Box C for my other crypto platforms that don't report basis to the IRS. Just make sure all your transactions are reported somewhere to avoid any missing income issues.

I think we're overthinking this. The key difference between Box B and Box C is whether basis was reported to the IRS. If Robinhood sent you a 1099-B AND reported basis to the IRS, then yes, technically Box B is correct. But the bottom line is that the IRS cares about getting their correct tax money, not which box you checked. As long as you report all your gains/losses accurately, this is not something they're going to come after you for.

I'm dealing with this exact same issue! Got my Robinhood 1099-B and CSV file, and TurboTax automatically put everything in Box C when I imported. But looking at the 1099-B, it does seem like Box B would be more appropriate since they're reporting basis information. Reading through all these responses, it sounds like the consensus is that Box B is technically correct for Robinhood crypto since they now report basis to the IRS, but using Box C won't cause any problems as long as all transactions are accurately reported. I think I'm going to stick with what TurboTax did (Box C) since manually changing everything would be a hassle and multiple people here confirmed it won't affect the tax calculation or cause issues with the IRS. Thanks everyone for the detailed explanations - this has been really helpful!