Trish Turner has resigned as head of the United States Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) digital assets division after roughly three months in the role.
“After more than 20 years with the IRS, I have closed an extraordinary chapter of my career with deep appreciation for those who shaped my journey and made the work so meaningful,” Turner said in a LinkedIn post on Friday.
“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,” Turner added.
Turner is reportedly moving to the private sector
Turner did not say in her post where she will go next, but explained she looks “forward to continuing this mission from a new vantage point and to building bridges between industry and regulators.”
Bloomberg Tax reported on Friday that Turner told the publication during an interview that she will become the tax director at the crypto tax firm Crypto Tax Girl. On the same day, Crypto Tax Girl founder Laura Walter said in a LinkedIn post that Turner will join the firm.
“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,” Walter said.
Turner’s resignation comes just over three months after she was tapped to lead the digital asset’s division in May, after Sulolit “Raj” Mukherjee and Seth Wilks, two private-sector experts brought in to lead the IRS’s crypto unit, exited after approximately a year in their roles.
Economist Timothy Peterson commented on the announcement, saying, “Trish Turner left the Dark Side to become a Crypto Jedi Knight.”
Crypto tax has become a key focus in the US
It follows the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) proposal in March to cut the IRS workforce by 20% and several recent developments around US crypto taxation.
Related: 5 countries where crypto is (surprisingly) tax-free in 2025
On July 11, Cointelegraph reported that the House Committee on Ways and Means and Oversight Subcommittee leadership said they had scheduled a July hearing to focus on “affirmative steps needed to place a tax policy framework on digital assets.”
Just days before, on July 4, the US Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration recommended reforms to the IRS criminal investigation division’s handling of digital assets, citing repeated failures to follow established protocols.
Meanwhile, on April 11, US President Donald Trump signed a joint congressional resolution overturning a Biden administration-era rule that would have required decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols to report transactions to the IRS.
Cointelegraph reached out to Trish Turner for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
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