ILLINOIS AND TWO CRYPTO GROUPS ASK A STATE COURT TO DELAY THE 0.2% DIGITAL ASSET TAX BY SIX MONTHS — JULY 1, 2027 INSTEAD OF JANUARY 1 — A JUDGE STILL HAS TO SIGN OFF — THE FIGHT OVER WHETHER THE TAX IS CONSTITUTIONAL GOES ON

Illinois officials and two industry groups, the Digital Chamber and the Illinois Blockchain Association, filed an agreed motion on October 1, 2026 asking the Sangamon County circuit court to delay the state's 0.2% Digital Asset Tax by six months. It was due to start January 1, 2027. The new date would be July 1, 2027, and a judge has to approve it.

The law, signed in July, "would tax digital assets involved in qualifying transactions conducted for Illinois customers at a rate of 0.2%," as Bitcoin.com describes it. CoinDesk reports it reaches firms with more than $100,000 in receipts. Our September 30 story read it as reaching paid withdrawals to self-custody. The delay leaves the lawsuit over whether the tax is constitutional running before anyone collects.

The industry's case, in the Digital Chamber's words quoted by Bitcoin.com: the tax applies "regardless of whether the investor realizes any gain, or whether ownership is even being transferred."

A tax that does not care whether you gained anything is a charge for using the system at all. Six months is a delay, not a repeal. The state agreed to wait, not to stop, and it is still in court defending the tax. At the time of this writing, bitcoin was $84,280.