South Korea ruling party proposes delaying crypto tax scheduled for 2027

Ruling party leader proposes another delay

South Korea's ruling party leader has officially proposed that the government delay the crypto tax that is currently set to take effect on Jan. 1, 2027.

Democratic Party leader Kim Min-seok made the proposal at a party supreme council meeting at the National Assembly. Local news outlet News1 reported his remarks on Wednesday.

Key details of the proposal

• The proposal has not yet been approved.
• If approved, it would be the fourth postponement of the levy, which was first legislated in 2020.
• The current plan would impose a 22% tax, including local tax, on annual gains from the transfer or lending of crypto assets above a basic deduction of 2.5 million won ($1,868.7).
• Kim said the party agreed the country should first enact the Digital Asset Basic Act, a comprehensive legal framework for crypto.

What Kim Min-seok said

Kim said the decision followed consultations through the Strategy and Finance Committee, government-party talks, and meetings with crypto asset businesses.

He said the party wanted to give companies and investors time to adapt to new rules. He also acknowledged past deferrals and said this time the party would set a clear deferral period while preparing prerequisites, including use of overseas transaction information, IT system verification and taxpayer guidance.

What is still unclear

The length of the proposed deferral was not stated in Kim's remarks. Separately, the presidential office was reportedly discussing a postponement until 2029 last week to align with the U.S. timeline for joining the OECD's Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework, but that was reported and not confirmed in the source material.

Where this report comes from

• The Block