Veteran IRS official Trish Turner steps down to join crypto tax firm

The Internal Revenue Service's top cryptocurrency lead left the tax agency as changes are set to come into force next year.

Trish Turner, who had been at the IRS for decades and took over the agency's crypto unit in May, announced her resignation in a post on LinkedIn on Friday. The IRS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"I’ve had the privilege of serving alongside some of the most intelligent, dedicated, and mission-driven professionals I’ve ever known," Turner said on LinkedIn. "Together, we navigated complex challenges, built lasting programs, and laid the groundwork for the IRS’s digital asset strategy as it shifted from niche to mainstream."

Two former directors including  Sulolit "Raj" Mukherjee and Seth Wilks, who previously co-led the Office of Digital Assets, left in May. 

Turner's leave comes amid a period of crypto taxation shifts. Beginning in January 2026, crypto brokers have to report both gross proceeds and cost basis of digital sales on Form 1099-DA, a new form to more accurately track crypto transactions. Meanwhile, there has recently been a huge spike in IRS warning letters sent to crypto investors, according to previous reporting from The Block. 

Lawmakers in Washington D.C. have also turned to tax reform as crypto bills make their way through Congress. Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., has introduced a bill to modernize tax treatment of crypto, including ending the double taxing of miners and stakers and setting forth a $300 de minimis transaction threshold to be exempt from taxes, among other changes. 

Turner will take on a new role as tax director at Crypto Tax Girl, the tax firm said on Friday in a post on X. 

"With all of the big crypto tax and compliance changes on the horizon, we are excited to have Trish on board to help advise our clients!" the firm said.