Jung Da-hyun is a reporter at The Korea Times, covering social issues in Korea, including foreign residents, education, environment and politics. Driven by a deep interest in people’s stories, she focuses on investigative and feature reporting through direct interviews and field coverage. She received the Amnesty International Korea Media Award for her “Deepfake Crisis at Schools” series. Reach her at dahyun08@koreatimes.co.kr. Always open to hearing your stories.
60% foreign tax defaulters in Seongnam are ethnic Koreans from China
gettyimagesbank
By Jung Da-hyun
A total of 6,223 foreign residents of Seongnam in Gyeonggi Province were found to be behind in their tax payments and 59.2 percent of them were ethnic Koreans from China, according to the city government.
Also, 571 Americans, 363 Chinese, 206 Canadians, and 185 Vietnamese residents of Seongnam just south of Seoul were behind in their tax payments.
The cumulative tax arrears from these individuals amounted to 1.29 billion won ($952,000), representing 3.2 percent of total unpaid taxes in the city.
This increase in unpaid taxes by foreign residents stems from a lack of awareness regarding tax obligations and language barriers, according to Seongnam officials.
In response, the city dispatched integrated notices, Wednesday, of arrears in Korean, English, Chinese and Vietnamese, to 2,171 foreign tax delinquents with known addresses.
Furthermore, Seongnam officials plan to distribute informative leaflets and banners in the four languages at the Foreigners' Welfare Center and Multicultural Family Support Center to raise awareness of arrears and encourage payments.
For those who have repeatedly defaulted or owe substantial amounts of taxes, Seongnam city intends to take stronger measures, including the seizures of assets like vehicles and real estate. The city's strategy also involves sharing a list of delinquents with the Ministry of Justice, which may result in visa restrictions for non-compliant individuals.