People Power Party lawmaker proposes delaying South Korea crypto tax to 2029

  • Rep. Kim Sang-hoon proposed delaying South Korea’s virtual-asset income tax start from January 1, 2027, to January 1, 2029.
  • The regime would tax transfer and lending gains at 22% after a 2.5 million won annual deduction, without loss carryforwards.
  • The proposal follows three prior postponements, petitions opposing the tax and government assurances that implementation will proceed.

People Power Party Rep. Kim Sang-hoon has submitted an Income Tax Act amendment that would delay South Korea’s virtual-asset income tax from January 1, 2027, to January 1, 2029. The proposal comes as young investors protest the 22% levy on gains exceeding the 2.5 million won annual deduction, arguing that stagnant wages, rising housing costs, limited wealth-building opportunities and unequal treatment compared with listed-stock investors make the policy unfair. Kim cited weak monitoring of decentralized exchanges, peer-to-peer markets and DeFi, limited access to overseas transaction data, and staggered international adoption of the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework, including the United States’ planned 2029 start. The framework, established in December 2020 under the Moon Jae-in administration, has already been postponed three times. Petitions opposing the tax gained 50,000 signatures in eight days in May 2026 and reached a National Assembly standing committee, while the government has said implementation cannot be delayed further. Passage of Kim’s bill remains uncertain, and critics warn another postponement could prolong regulatory ambiguity.

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