Form 1099-DA field reference
Form 1099-DA Box 1d: Date acquired
What to check
- Verify the selected tax lot
- Use records for transferred-in assets
- Confirm short- or long-term status
Where Box 1d flows on your return
Box 1d's date, together with Box 1e's sale date, determines whether Form 8949 Part I (short-term) or Part II (long-term) is the correct section for that disposition, and ultimately whether the gain or loss is taxed at short-term or long-term capital gains rates on Schedule D.
How Box 1d works
Box 1d reports the original acquisition date for the specific digital-asset lot disposed of, when the broker's records make that determination possible. It can legitimately be blank in several situations: the assets were acquired on a variety of dates and the broker used a lot-matching method that doesn't reduce to one date, the security is noncovered and Box 9 is checked, or the broker used one of the optional aggregate reporting methods for stablecoins or specified NFTs.
When Box 1d is populated, it reflects the tax lot the broker's system actually matched to the sale — which may follow first-in-first-out (FIFO) ordering by default or a specific-identification election you made with the broker before the trade settled. If you intended to sell a different, specifically identified lot than the one the broker used, the date shown may not match your own recordkeeping.
For assets transferred in from another wallet or broker (see Boxes 12a-12b), the receiving broker may not have visibility into the true original acquisition date and could leave Box 1d blank or report the transfer-in date instead — those are two different concepts, and only the true acquisition date determines your holding period.
Worked example
Devon bought 1 BTC in March of a prior year and sold it this year. Because the broker held that lot the entire time with clear specific-identification records, Box 1d shows the original March purchase date, Box 1e shows this year's sale date, and the more-than-one-year gap between them means the gain reports on Form 8949 Part II as long-term.
Continue the filing flow
Frequently asked questions
Why is Box 1d blank on my 1099-DA?
A blank Box 1d usually means the assets were acquired on multiple dates without a single lot identified, the security is noncovered and reported under Box 9, or the broker used an optional aggregate reporting method for stablecoins or NFTs that does not require an acquisition date.
What do I do if Box 1d is blank but I need the acquisition date?
Reconstruct it from your own trade confirmations, wallet transaction history, or prior broker statements, since you still need a holding period to determine short-term versus long-term treatment on Form 8949 even when the broker did not supply one.
Does the date in Box 1d always reflect specific-lot identification I chose?
Not necessarily — brokers commonly default to FIFO lot matching unless you made a specific-identification election before the trade settled, so Box 1d may reflect the broker's default ordering rather than the lot you intended to sell.