Updated October 17, 2026. Quick answer: Boxes 2 and 9 of Form 1099-DA are checkboxes. Box 2 says the broker reported your cost basis to the IRS, and box 9 says the digital asset is a noncovered security, in which case basis, dates and gain type may be blank. They decide how much of the form you can rely on and how you complete Form 8949.
Form 8949 for 2025, read code by code: Form 8949 boxes A to L and Form 8949 code B.
What the two checkboxes mean
The recipient instructions give each box a short entry.
| Box | What the recipient instructions say | What the broker is told |
|---|---|---|
| Box 2 checked | “If checked, the basis in box 1g has been reported to the IRS” | “Check this box if:” “You are not checking box 9” |
| Box 9 checked | “If checked, the digital asset sold was a noncovered security” | “You may check this box if reporting the sale of a noncovered security.” |
The pages on Form 1099-DA box 1g and boxes 1h and 1i cover the amount boxes these checkboxes govern, and the Form 1099-DA boxes guide lays out the rest of the form.
Box 2: basis reported to the IRS
The recipient instructions tie box 2 to box 1g and to box 6: “If checked, the basis in box 1g has been reported to the IRS and either the short-term or the long-term gain or loss box in box 6 will be checked.”
For the broker, the rule for when to check it is short: “You are not checking box 9, or” “You are checking box 9 but are reporting basis to the IRS in box 1g anyway.” In other words, a checked box 2 means the number in box 1g went to the IRS, even where box 9 is also checked. A broker using the optional method for qualifying stablecoins or specified NFTs is told “Do not check this box if you are reporting sales of qualifying stablecoins or specified NFTs using an optional reporting method.”
What follows for you is in the next sentence of the recipient instructions: “If box 2 is checked on Form(s) 1099-DA and NO adjustment is required, see the instructions for your Schedule D (Form 1040), as you may be able to report your transaction directly on Schedule D (Form 1040).” The same passage adds a caution: “If the “Ordinary” box in box 6 is checked, an adjustment may be required.” That box is explained on the page for box 6. The forms involved are Form 8949 and Schedule D.
Box 9: noncovered security
The recipient instructions say what a checked box 9 permits to be blank: “If checked, the digital asset sold was a noncovered security and boxes 1d, 1g, 1h, 1i, 2, and 6 may be blank.”
The filer instructions define the term. They say a covered security is “a digital asset acquired after 2025 for cash, stored-value cards, different digital assets, or any property or services the disposition of which the broker is required to report in an account for which the broker provided custodial services.” and then: “A digital asset is a covered security only if it was acquired in an account for which the broker provided custodial services and was held in that account until the broker effects the disposition of the digital asset.”
A noncovered security is everything else: “a noncovered security is any digital asset that is not a covered security.” The instructions list examples, including “A digital asset that was acquired before January 1, 2026.” and “A digital asset that was transferred in to the broker providing custodial services.” The comparable stock-form concept is on the page for Form 1099-B box 5 and box 12.
When basis is blank
A blank box 1g is not a zero. The recipient instructions are explicit: “If box 1g is blank, you will need to determine your basis based on your own books and records.” They also say how to tell a zero from a blank: “If box 1g has any entry, including zero, the information within that box has been reported to the IRS as basis.”
The checkbox on Form 8949 follows the same logic. The form’s checkbox entry says it “Indicates where to report this transaction on Form 8949 and Schedule D (Form 1040), and which checkbox is applicable.” The broker is told that the code for a short-term transaction “for which the cost or other basis is not being reported to the IRS” differs from the one for which it is. The transaction detail is on the page for boxes 1c, 1d and 1e.
Penalty relief and the box 9 choice, by tax year
For the tax year 2025 form, the broker instructions describe a transition: “You are not required to report basis information” in boxes 1d, 1g, 1h, 1i, 2 and 6. For sales effected in 2025, the same instructions say a broker “may voluntarily fill out these boxes”. That is why a 2025 form can have basis filled in on some lines and not on others, and why box 9 may or may not be checked on a noncovered sale. For sales after 2025, the broker instructions say: “If you do not check box 9, you are subject to penalties under sections 6721 and 6722 for failure to report or furnish the information in boxes 1d, 1g, 1h (if applicable), 1i (if applicable), 2, and 6 correctly even if you are reporting the sale of a noncovered security.”
Edition and box numbers
The primary read for this page is the 2025 edition of Form 1099-DA with its Instructions for Recipient, which is the form sent in early 2026 for tax year 2025, together with the 2025 Instructions for Form 1099-DA that the broker follows. The 2026 edition was the one irs.gov served as current on 2026-10-17, so both were read and compared.
The recipient text for box 2 and box 9 reads the same in both editions except that the 2025 edition prints a capitalized “NO adjustment is required” and the 2026 edition prints “no adjustment is required”. The broker instructions for box 9 do differ. The 2025 edition says “For returns filed for sales prior to January 1, 2026, you are entitled to this penalty relief”, while the 2026 edition says “For returns filed for sales after 2025, you are subject to penalties under section 6721 and 6722”. The 2026 recipient instructions also add a note that these boxes may be blank for qualifying stablecoins or specified NFTs: “may be blank if the broker is reporting sales of qualifying stablecoins or specified NFTs using an optional reporting method.”
Box numbers can stay the same while the wording around them moves, so check the tax year printed on the form you actually received before relying on any description here.
Common mistakes
- Treating a blank box 1g as zero basis. The recipient instructions say “If box 1g is blank, you will need to determine your basis based on your own books and records.”
- Skipping Form 8949 because box 2 is checked without reading the box 6 caution. The instructions say “If the “Ordinary” box in box 6 is checked, an adjustment may be required.”
- Assuming box 9 means the broker did something wrong. The form says “the digital asset sold was a noncovered security and boxes 1d, 1g, 1h, 1i, 2, and 6 may be blank”, which the broker instructions treat as an allowed result.
Related: Form 8949, Schedule D, and Form 1099-B box 5 and box 12.
Sources
- Form 1099-DA (2025) with Instructions for Recipient: IRS archived PDF (irs.gov)
- Form 1099-DA (2026) with Instructions for Recipient: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1099da.pdf
- Instructions for Form 1099-DA (2025): IRS archived PDF (irs.gov)
- Instructions for Form 1099-DA (2026): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1099da.pdf
Read from the IRS documents linked above on October 17, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer, the account provider or the IRS is the right place to confirm anything consequential.