FinCEN, Fed withdraw $250 crypto transfer-data plan; EU checks still apply
In brief
- FinCEN and the Federal Reserve withdrew a 2020 plan to lower a $3,000 threshold to $250.
- The Federal Register published the withdrawal notice on Nov. 9, and it took effect that day.
- The $3,000 Travel Rule threshold for qualifying crypto transfers stays in place with other existing US rules.
- The EU's crypto-transfer regulation has no general exemption for small crypto transfers.
What the US pulled back
The proposal covered two rules. The Recordkeeping Rule requires covered institutions to collect and retain transfer information, while the Travel Rule requires that information to pass to other institutions in the payment chain. The 2020 plan would have pushed specified duties under both down to $250 for cross-border transfers.
That didn't happen.
The joint notice cites more than five years having passed, the value of further public feedback and changes in virtual-currency markets and legal frameworks as its reasons. (The agencies said any future similar amendments should reflect those developments.)
Existing US requirements stay in place. The notice describes the current threshold as $3,000 or more, and FinCEN's 2019 virtual-currency guidance says qualifying convertible-virtual-currency transfers at that level can trigger Travel Rule requirements. Covered money transmitters also keep their applicable anti-money-laundering programs, customer-identification controls, recordkeeping, monitoring and reporting obligations.
Why Europe still matters
The EU's crypto-transfer regulation has applied since Dec. 30, 2024. It covers customer transfers involving a crypto-asset service provider with its registered office in the EU, and its information requirements have no general exemption for small crypto transfers. The regulation says crypto transfers should face the same requirements regardless of amount or whether they're domestic or cross-border. Article 14 lists sender and recipient names among the required information.
CryptoSlate walked through a hypothetical $500 transfer to illustrate the point (it's an example, not an observed payment). That amount sits well below the US Travel Rule's $3,000 threshold. Under CryptoSlate's reading, the receiving exchange's EU obligations can still keep the recipient from accessing the assets until the required information is supplied.
Whose duties are these?
In CryptoSlate's example, the relevant duties belong to the EU receiving provider. The US exchange's own obligations are governed separately, so the scenario isn't a case of European rules reaching directly over American senders.
The US withdrawal means those US duties weren't extended into the lower-value band. It doesn't change the European side. CryptoSlate's analysis said the US retreat leaves the EU exchange's information and recipient-verification requirements intact.
Frequently asked questions
Did the US lower the Travel Rule threshold to $250?
No. FinCEN and the Federal Reserve withdrew the October 2020 proposal, and the withdrawal took effect on Nov. 9. The proposed $250 threshold never took effect through this rulemaking, and the joint notice describes the current threshold as $3,000 or more.
Why did FinCEN and the Fed withdraw the $250 proposal?
The joint notice cited the passage of more than five years, the value of further public feedback, and changes in virtual-currency markets and legal frameworks. The agencies said any future similar amendments should reflect those developments.
Can EU rules affect a crypto transfer below $3,000?
According to CryptoSlate, yes. The EU's crypto-transfer regulation, applicable since Dec. 30, 2024, has no general exemption for small crypto transfers. In CryptoSlate's hypothetical $500 example, the receiving EU exchange's obligations can keep the recipient from accessing the assets until required information is supplied.
