See my comment below--the tax-related demand for USD comes from the holding period between incurring the tax liability and paying it, not from the payment itsel

See my comment below--the tax-related demand for USD comes from the holding period between incurring the tax liability and paying it, not from the payment itself. Even if you get paid in BTC and pay your taxes in BTC, 1 mBTC earned on Jan 1 with a 30% tax rate doesn't imply you owe 0.3 mBTC on April 15--USA tax law expects you to convert from BTC to USD using the Jan 1 exchange rate to calculate your tax liability, and then convert back using the April 15 exchange rate when you make the payment.