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Overseas tax evasion still rampant
By Lee Kyung-min
By Lee Kyung-min
Nearly 18 percent of taxes levied on Korean individuals and companies operating abroad over the past five years remains uncollected, a lawmaker said Thursday.
According to data submitted from the National Tax Service to Rep. Kim Doo-kwan of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, of about 6.4 trillion won ($5.3 billion) in overseas tax duties imposed between 2014 and 2018, over 1.15 trillion won has yet to be collected.
By year, the tax agency imposed a total of 1.33 trillion won last year, up from 1.31 trillion won in 2017 and 1.28 trillion won in 2015.
Of the amount imposed, 220 billion won remained uncollected in 2018, 189 billion won in 2017 and 169 billion won in 2015.
The lawmaker called for more stringent measures to ensure fair taxation, saying more people are suspected of engaging in sophisticated tax avoidance and evasion.
“An increasing number of people have evaded tax over the past years and the number is expected to rise,” the lawmaker said.
“Intense scrutiny is required to target those who fail to report overseas assets including financial accounts and real estate, as a growing number of people exploit various legal loopholes to exempt themselves from what should rightfully and equally be shared as their duty as Korean nationals,” he added.
Meanwhile, the data comes amid ongoing efforts to crack down on overseas tax evasion.
The NTS said those who raise and retain slush funds using accounts under overseas corporate entities will be investigated while those who aid and abet illegal tax evasion efforts will also be subject to harsher punishment.