South Korea Confirms 22% Crypto Tax Goes Ahead in January 2027

South Korea’s Finance Ministry has confirmed that a long-delayed tax on crypto gains will take effect as scheduled in January 2027.

Moon Kyung-ho, director of the ministry’s income tax division, announced at an emergency parliamentary forum on virtual asset taxation held at the National Assembly Members’ Office Building in Seoul on Thursday, according to South Korea news outlet Edaily. The forum was hosted by Representative Park Soo-young of the People Power Party and the Korea Tax Policy Association.

“We will proceed with virtual asset taxation as scheduled in January next year,” Moon said in what appears to be the first public confirmation from the ministry that the crypto tax framework will move forward after multiple postponements.

Under the current Income Tax Act, profits generated through the transfer or lending of virtual assets will be categorized as “other income” beginning Jan. 1, 2027. Investors earning more than 2.5 million Korean won ($1,800) annually from crypto activities will face a 22% tax, including a 20% income tax and 2% local tax. The rule applies to an estimated 13.26 million investors.

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South Korea prepares tax guidance

Moon said the National Tax Service is currently finalizing guidance on the new system and has held several working-level meetings with South Korea’s five major exchanges, including Dunamu (Upbit), Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit and Gopax, to prepare a draft notice.

He added that the notice would be published for legislative review during 2026. Speaking to reporters after the forum, Moon walked back his use of the word “soon,” clarifying that the notice would arrive sometime this year, not imminently.

Moon Kyung-ho at the National Assembly Members’ Office Building in Yeouido, Seoul. Source: Edaily.

South Korean regulators have delayed the crypto tax twice before, pushing the start date from 2025 to 2027 amid political disagreement and industry pushback over exchange readiness and the threshold level. More recently, the ruling People Power Party proposed a bill to scrap the tax altogether before its 2027 rollout.

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South Korea’s crypto industry pushes back on AML rules

As Cointelegraph reported, proposed changes to South Korea’s anti-money laundering (AML) rules have drawn sharp criticism from the country’s crypto industry. DAXA, an industry body representing 27 registered virtual asset service providers, warned that requiring exchanges to flag all overseas-linked transfers of 10 million won or more as suspicious would increase reported cases by 85 times, from around 63,000 last year to over 5.4 million, making compliance unworkable in practice.

The Financial Services Commission and Financial Intelligence Unit proposed the amendments on March 30, with a public comment period running through May 11 and final rules expected in July.

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