South Korea is Planning to Impose Tax on Cryptocurrency; Global Discussion on Digital Tax

Have you ever thought of paying tax on cryptocurrency? The South Korean government is considering imposing a tax on cryptocurrency. The finance minister talks about the crypto tax before the parliamentary finance committee.

Full Details will Come Next Month

On June 17, the local media news outlet, Korea JoongAng Daily, reported that the finance minister of South Korea plans to tax on cryptocurrency. Per the report, Hong Nam-Ki will give details about the latest government initiative next month.

Hong Nam-ki said the government “has continued to realign its tax system to reflect changes in market conditions, but it is especially working to refine its list of taxable items and types of tax this year.”

Hong Nam-Ki is also the vice prime minister for the economy besides holding the ministry of finance. “Personally, I believe a digital tax needs to be imposed as a new type of tax, and the government too is considering moving in that direction,” he said.

With the global adoption of Bitcoin and other prominent cryptocurrencies, the hunger of Korea-based investors for digital assets has been increased. It may be the one reason why the government decides to cut tax on cryptocurrency within the country.

At the start of the year, the ministry was thinking about putting a 20% tax on income from transactions. “Earlier, the Finance Ministry said it has been considering imposing a 20 percent tax on income from cryptocurrency transactions, raising speculation that it may categorize gains from cryptocurrency trading as other income, not capital gains, the report said.

Digital Tax

The vice prime minister of for economy also reveals that the government is engaged in global discussions about the implementation of digital tax. In the case of digital tax, the government can collect tax from foreign firms, but on the other hand, the local companies will oblige to overseas taxation.

Last year, the cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb paid 80.3 billion won worth $66 million to the government in “withholding tax.”