Crypto Inheritance Guide

Valuing crypto at the date of death

Last reviewed: October 2026

In short

Pick one reasonable price source, note the time zone, apply it to every holding on the date of death, and keep the evidence. Tax authorities care more that the method is consistent and documented than about which exchange’s price you used. In the US and UK that value also becomes the heir’s starting point for capital gains; in Australia it usually doesn’t, and in Canada the estate pays tax on the gain up to that value.

Why the number matters

Three things depend on the value at the date of death:

  1. Estate or inheritance tax, where it exists. The estate is valued as a whole; crypto is part of it.
  2. The heir’s future tax. In the United States and the United Kingdom, the heir is treated as having acquired the crypto at its value on the date of death, so a later sale is taxed only on the gain after that. Getting the number right now saves tax later.
  3. Fairness between heirs. If one takes the bitcoin and another the car, somebody has to say what the bitcoin was worth.

Which price to use

Crypto trades on hundreds of exchanges, around the clock, with no closing bell. No authority prescribes a single price. What they ask for is a reasonable, consistent, documented method:

  • United States. The estate is valued at fair market value on the date of death (26 CFR 20.2031-1). The IRS has no crypto-specific rule for estates, but its income-tax guidance shows what it accepts: the price recorded by the exchange for a transaction, or, for coins in a private wallet, a value “as determined by a cryptocurrency or blockchain explorer that analyzes worldwide indices” at the exact date and time (IRS FAQ, Q26–Q27). Written for transactions rather than deaths, but a reasonable guide. The underlying rule since 2014: convert “at the exchange rate, in a reasonable manner that is consistently applied” (Notice 2014-21). Estates may instead elect to value everything as of six months after death (or the date of sale, if sooner), but only if that lowers both the estate’s value and the tax (26 U.S.C. §2032). The estate tax return lists digital assets explicitly (Form 706 instructions).
  • United Kingdom. HMRC wants “the date of death value” on the inheritance tax return (CRYPTO25000), reported in box 76 of the IHT400, the box for “other types of assets”, with the detail in the additional information section, according to HMRC’s own letter to advisers in late 2025 (ICAEW copy). On method: “Reasonable care should be taken to arrive at an appropriate valuation for the transaction using a consistent methodology”, and the method should be recorded (CRYPTO23000). Unlike shares, crypto gets no relief if it’s sold for less within a year of death.
  • Canada. The deceased is treated as having sold everything at fair market value just before death, so the value sets the tax on the final return (CRA). The CRA’s crypto guidance suggests “an exchange rate taken from the same exchange broker you are using or an average of high/low/open/close values across a number of high-volume exchange brokers”, used consistently and recorded (CRA).
  • Australia. No tax at death, and for crypto the heir inherits the deceased’s cost base rather than the value at death (ATO). So the number that matters in Australia is what the person originally paid, which is a records problem rather than a pricing one. The date-of-death value is still useful for dividing the estate.

A method that holds up

  1. List every holding by coin and amount: exchange balances (including staked balances), each wallet address, tokens, NFTs. The asset inventory works as the worksheet.
  2. Choose one price source and stick to it for every coin. The exchange where the coins were held is the natural choice for exchange balances. For wallets, a widely used price index is fine. Note that CoinGecko’s historical pages use UTC days (CoinGecko); if the time of death matters, say which time zone you used.
  3. Choose a convention, such as the daily close or the midpoint between the day’s high and low, and apply it to everything. Don’t shop for the lowest price per coin.
  4. Ask exchanges for a statement showing the balance and value on the date of death. Most can produce one for the executor.
  5. Keep the evidence: screenshots of the price pages with the date visible, exported CSVs, the exchange statements, and a one-page note describing the method.
  6. Record the result per holding, in the estate’s currency, and give each heir a copy of the figure for what they receive. In the US and UK that’s their cost basis from now on.

Awkward cases

  • Tokens with no reliable market. Thinly traded tokens, project tokens, locked allocations: use the best available price and say why it’s uncertain. An adviser may want an appraisal.
  • NFTs. No index exists. A recent sale of the same item is the best evidence; the floor price of its collection is a common proxy; anything valuable may need a professional appraisal, and US advisers note there are few qualified ones (Greenleaf Trust).
  • Stablecoins. Worth their peg unless the peg has broken. Still list them.
  • Crypto you know about but can’t reach. In the UK, report it with an explanation and an estimated value (CRYPTO25000). Elsewhere, tell the adviser; see When the keys are really lost.
  • A price that moved a lot after death. Only the US has a formal alternative date, and only when it reduces the tax. Everywhere else the date of death stands.

None of this is tax advice. The estate’s accountant or lawyer should sign off on the method; your job is to bring them a complete list and the evidence.

Next: After you’ve got access.