The US answer, in plain English — unstaking is not the same as selling.
Same coins back to your wallet is not a sale. No disposal, no capital gains tax on the unstake itself.
Crypto is property. Tax hits disposals and income — not moving your own coins from staked to unstaked.
Rewards locked until unstaking become income when you can finally use them — Rev. Rul. 2023-14, dominion and control.
Swapping stETH back to ETH may count as a disposal. The IRS has never ruled on it — take one view, consistently.
Unstake: no tax. The sale right after: capital gain or loss against your original basis. Two separate events.
10 ETH bought for $20,000, unstaked intact: no tax on return. Sold later for $30,000: gain $10,000. Holding period never reset.
The 4-way table, the stETH grey area, the fee trap and the record checklist — all in the free guide.
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