That 3.3% Withheld From Your Paycheck? You Can Get It Back
Once you're registered as a foreigner and have stayed in Korea 183 days or more, you're classified as a tax resident with the same filing duties as any other worker. If you earned part-time income at a cafe, convenience store, or as a tutor with 3.3% withheld from your pay, filing a comprehensive income tax return the following May reconciles that against what you actually owe — and you can claim back the difference you overpaid.
What's Different About Student Part-time Income
How to File for a Refund
Tax Advantages for International Students
The lower your annual income, the bigger your refund rate
Once the basic personal deduction is applied, your actual tax owed is often less than what was withheld — so even small amounts of income are usually worth filing for.
Hometax makes filing fairly simple
After signing up for Hometax with your alien registration number, the National Tax Service's pre-filled return service can make the whole process much easier.
A clean filing history helps once you transition to a work visa
A consistent filing history while you're studying can serve as useful reference material later, whether for a work visa transition or your first wage income filing after graduation.
The Most Common Mistake We See
Many students simply don't realize they're eligible for a refund and never file at all, or they fail to keep withholding receipts from each employer and end up leaving out some income when they do file.