CARF
Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework
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The OECD standard for the automatic exchange of information on crypto assets, comparable to the CRS for financial accounts.
Crypto-asset service providers are obliged to report. Switzerland implements CARF through an amendment of its AEOI legislation; in the EU, this is done through DAC8.
In practice
For family offices, CARF means that crypto holdings become almost as transparent as bank accounts: crypto-asset service providers collect the tax residence and tax identification number of their clients and report holdings and transactions. In the EU, implementation takes place via DAC8; Switzerland adopts the standard through the automatic exchange of information. In practice, this means keeping the tax data of all structures up to date and including crypto assets in full in the consolidated wealth overview.
Distinctions and common mistakes
CARF obliges crypto-asset service providers, not the family directly. Holdings in self-custody wallets are not reported automatically by anyone – but they still have to be declared in the tax return. A typical mistake is to rely on the platform's report instead of keeping one's own records.
Relevant in: Switzerland · EU-wide
Related terms
- DAC8
- EU Directive (EU) 2023/2226, which requires crypto-asset service providers to report user data to the tax authorities from the 2026 reporting year.
- Automatic exchange of information
- The annual automatic exchange of financial account information between tax authorities under the OECD's Common Reporting Standard.
Mentioned in these guides
- DAC8 and CARF: reporting of crypto-assetsWhat DAC8 and the OECD Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework mean for family offices holding crypto-assets: timeline in the EU and Switzerland and how to prepare.