Cryptic about crypto? Tell all or face jail term, penalty

The Finance Bill, 2026 tightens the compliance screws on crypto assets, expanding reporting and sharpening penalties from April 1, 2026, while leaving tax rates unchanged. Crypto exchanges, wallet providers and intermediaries must now report transaction details to tax authorities, aligning India with the OECD’s crypto-asset reporting framework. The VDA (virtual digital assets) definition widens to explicitly cover “crypto-assets” built on distributed-ledger technology.Non-filing of statements draws a Rs 200-a-day penalty. Inaccurate disclosures or due-diligence lapses attract Rs 50,000 fine. Failure to deposit tax collected on VDA transfers can trigger prosecution, including up to two years’ jail where the amount exceeds Rs 50 lakh. Cases where consideration is paid wholly in kind are excluded. “On the foreign asset disclosure scheme, the memorandum...does not specifically include VDAs. So, uncertainty continues on whether offshore-held VDAs must be reported in Schedule FA and whether they qualify under the scheme,” said Meyyappan Nagappan, partner, tax practice at Trilegal.