 National Tax Service (NTS) Commissioner Lee Hyun-dong, right, shakes hands with Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Sohn Kyung-shik during a luncheon for tax authorities Tuesday at the Lotte Hotel in central Seoul. / Yonhap |
By Kim Jae-won
Samsung Electronics asked the nation’s tax agency for help in international tax disputes Tuesday. In a luncheon meeting made public to reporters, organized for tax officials to hear firms’ grievances, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Yoon-woo said its 25 overseas subsidiaries are being investigated by 17 foreign tax offices and asked for help.
On hand were National Tax Service (NTS) Commissioner Lee Hyun-dong, Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Sohn Kyung-shik and heads of the firms.
The NTS head said he will spare no effort to help the companies ensure that they are not unfairly treated and will arrange for more company-to-tax office agreements or advance pricing agreements (APAs).
“We are doing business in more than 120 countries but only five areas, the U.S., China, EU, Japan and Australia, have advance pricing agreements with us,” said Samsung Vice Chairman Lee.
An APA is a tax arrangement between firms operating overseas and tax offices of host countries regarding taxation.
The Samsung executive said there are current disputes in Brazil, India, Taiwan and Indonesia, and his company may face large fines and back taxes.
The NTS said Southeast Asian nations are conducting aggressive taxation against international companies, and most of the cases are related to transfer pricing, which can be solved by signing APAs.
“As we know the matter well, we are trying to help Korean companies by extending our networks in those nations,” said Park Yun-jun, assistant commissioner for international taxation.
NTS Commissioner Lee asked leaders of Korean companies to manage their businesses openly.
“I wish business leaders would conduct transparent management in law and principle, so that they can contribute to the nation’s economy,” he said.
![[INTERVIEW] Hip-hop group Uptown returns after 13 years with new lineup](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/0eae35da5e9c40c38cf439e550a2eb3e.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
![[INTERVIEW] ASTRO members aim to shine in musical theater](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/df16760dc50f469d93434f66a069465c.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
