Overview
- Illinois lawmakers included the Digital Asset Tax Act in the FY2027 budget and Governor J. B. Pritzker signed it into law, creating a 0.2% tax on the value of digital assets exchanged, transferred, or held for Illinois customers that takes effect January 1, 2027.
- The law requires any digital‑asset broker with an Illinois physical presence or $100,000 or more in Illinois gross receipts to register with the Illinois Department of Revenue before doing business with Illinois customers and to collect and report the tax monthly.
- DATA presumes receipts are Illinois‑sourced unless brokers prove otherwise and does not define how ‘value’ is measured, creating major operational uncertainty for exchanges, custodians, wallets, and other brokers.
- CFTC Chair Michael S. Selig publicly criticized the measure in an opinion piece on July 1, saying the tax hits transactions even when no gain occurs and warning it could push firms and innovation out of the state, a view echoed by industry leaders.
- Legal and practical challenges lie ahead because the Department of Revenue has not issued implementing rules, brokers may geo‑block or relocate to avoid compliance, and lawyers expect constitutional and federal‑law challenges over interstate and internet tax rules.