By Jane Han
Staff Reporter
The chief of one of the nation's largest business lobby groups Friday asked the prime minister to abolish the much abhorred inheritance tax, which has long been a complaint among domestic business leaders.
At a luncheon attended by Prime Minister Han Seung-soo and some 30 heads of local chambers of commerce, Chairman Sohn Kyung-shik of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) said inheritors should no longer be subject to inheritance tax but pay a capital gains tax upon disposing of assets they've inherited.
``It's not right to press people to pay tax before they even financially gain from assets they receive,'' said Sohn, explaining that inheritors must often sell inherited stocks and properties just to pay the heavy taxes.
He stressed that advanced economies such as Australia, Italy, Sweden and Hong Kong have already cut the tax, while the United States is considering following suit.
Inheritance tax has been a lasting problem here, as many small, medium and large business owners complained that they were afraid of passing on their businesses to their children or spouses because of the heavy tax that would follow.
Many small- and medium-sized enterprises have even moved their operations to other countries to avoid the tax burden.
Opponents claimed that the exemption would only open doors for unethical owners to evade taxes through paper companies.
Effective market price stabilization, speedy ratification of the Korea-U.S. free trade deal and aggressive deregulation measures were among other topics discussed.