About this content
We used the table of contents from an NTS-published bilingual FAQ guide as a topic curriculum. All answers below were independently rewritten to reflect current 2026 tax law — none of the original 2008 figures were carried over.
Chapter 1. Resident/Non-resident Determination
Resident vs. Non-resident Criteria and Dual-Residency Tie-Breakers
How Korea determines resident vs. non-resident status, the 2026 rule change, and the tax-treaty tie-breaker order when you qualify as a resident of two countries at once.
Your passport doesn't change — but your residency status can, every year.
When Your Residency Status Changes — and How Taxation Changes With It
The exact date your status flips when you leave or return to Korea, and how global vs. separate taxation applies differently before and after.
Departure takes a day — but your new tax status starts the very next one.
Chapter 2. Year-end Tax Settlement of Foreigners
How Year-end Settlement Works: The Wage Income Tax Calculation Flow
A step-by-step walk-through of how Korea calculates your final year-end tax, from gross pay down to the amount actually owed or refunded.
You get a payslip every month, but the calculation logic only needs a once-a-year refresher.
Class B Wage Earners — When Your Salary Comes From Abroad
What "Class B" wage income means when your paycheck comes directly from an overseas employer, and how to file through a Class B Taxpayer Association.
Your salary lands in a foreign account, but the filing duty still lands here.
Understanding Your Year-end Refund and Withholding Receipt
Why year-end refunds happen and how to read every line of your Wage & Salary Income Tax Withholding Receipt.
People call it a "13th month's pay," but it's really just your own overpaid tax coming back.
What Gets Deducted From Your Monthly Pay (4 Major Insurances, Etc.)
Every line item deducted from your monthly paycheck — income tax and the four major social insurances — with current 2026 rates.
You get a payslip every month — it's worth understanding it at least once.
How Wage Income Taxation Differs for Residents and Non-residents
Even for the same wage income, residents and non-residents face very different deduction rules. A side-by-side comparison.
Same paycheck, completely different deduction rulebook.
Dependent (Personal) Deductions
Who qualifies as a dependent, the income and residency tests, and the KRW 1.5 million per-person deduction.
Family is always with you — the deduction only comes along if the requirements are met.
Education Expense Tax Credit
The 15% education-expense tax credit for yourself and your children, its caps, and which schools qualify.
Tuition hurts most up front — the credit is the part you collect later.
Donation Tax Credit
Tax credit rates for statutory and designated donations, including the special 10%-of-income cap for religious donations.
Giving comes from the heart — keeping the receipt is just good practice.
Deductions for Marriage, Funeral, and Moving Expenses
Special tax credits tied to major life events — marriage, bereavement, and relocation.
The bigger the life event, the easier it is to miss the small credit attached to it.
Cash Receipt and Card Usage Income Deduction
How to register for cash receipts and the deduction rates/caps for credit card, debit card, and cash receipt spending.
The payment takes a second — register once, and the deduction keeps accumulating.
Year-end Settlement for Early Departure and Dual Employment
How year-end settlement works if you leave Korea before your contract ends, or worked for two employers in the same year.
The contract might end early — the settlement still has to be wrapped up on time.
The Year-end Settlement Simplified Service
How to pull all your medical, education, and other deduction records in one place through Hometax and submit them to your employer.
Your receipts are scattered everywhere — the lookup doesn't have to be.
Currency Conversion for Wages Paid in Foreign Currency
Which exchange rate to use when converting foreign-currency wages into Korean won for tax filing.
Exchange rates move every day — the rate used for your filing is fixed to one.
Chapter 3. Global Income Tax Return of Foreigners
Who Must File a Global Income Tax Return, How, and By When
Whether you need to file, how to do it on Hometax, and the May filing deadline (with its exceptions).
Income arrives every month — filing only happens once, in May.
Tax Duties of Foreign English Teachers and Freelance Instructors
How taxation differs between an academy-employed teacher (wage income) and a freelance instructor (business income), and treaty exemptions.
Every class is different — but the income category is settled by a single line in your contract.
Filing When You Have Wage Income Plus Other Income
How to add business, rental, or other income on top of your already-settled wage income in the May return.
Your employer wraps up the main job — the side income is on you to report.
Reporting Foreign Income and Claiming the Foreign Tax Credit
A resident's duty to report worldwide income, and how the foreign tax credit prevents double taxation.
Income crosses borders freely — the tax bill is adjusted so you don't pay it twice.
Who Counts as a Dependent for Comprehensive Income Tax
Dependent eligibility rules for the comprehensive income tax return, and how they differ from year-end wage settlement.
It's not on your payslip, but it reappears on the comprehensive income tax return.
Required Filing Documents and Penalties for Non-Compliance
What documents you need to file, and the penalty rates for not filing, under-reporting, or paying late.
The more paperwork you have ready in advance, the less you have to worry about penalties.
Income Tax Refunds and the Current Rate Table
Korea's 8-bracket progressive income tax table for 2026, and how to check and receive your refund.
The rate climbs by bracket — it doesn't apply to your whole income at the top rate.
How Retirement Income Is Taxed
How Korea's service-year deduction and converted-salary formula soften the progressive tax bite on severance pay, and the IRP tax benefit.
Retirement happens once — the tax calculation spreads it back across every year you worked.
Stock Option Taxation
How stock option gains are classified for tax purposes, when the tax is triggered, and the venture-company exemption.
Getting the option is exciting — the tax clock starts only when you exercise it.
Chapter 4. Tax Incentives for Foreigners
Tax-Treaty Income Exemption for Visiting Teachers and Professors
Requirements and duration for the tax-treaty exemption available to visiting teachers and professors at accredited institutions.
Every semester of teaching feels new — the exemption rules stay exactly as the treaty wrote them.
VAT Refunds for Foreign Tourists and Foreign Businesses
Refund limits for tourists using duty-free-eligible stores, and how foreign businesses reclaim VAT on Korean expenses.
Shopping is part of the trip — the refund only works if you follow the process.
Chapter 5. Tax Withholding for Korean Source Income
Withholding Tax Rates on Korean-Source Income
A quick-reference table of statutory withholding rates for a non-resident's interest, dividend, royalty, and personal-service income.
Income comes in many forms — the withholding rate simply follows the table.
Applying and Calculating the Tax-Treaty Limited Rate
Why the treaty rate wins when lower than the domestic rate, and how to apply for it before income is paid.
Domestic law sets the rate — the treaty wins whenever it's lower.
Case Studies: Withholding on Independent Services and Short-Term Lecturers
Practical scenarios showing how withholding applies to a non-resident's short-term services or guest-lecture income in Korea.
A single-day lecture still triggers withholding on the very same day.
Withholding on Interest, Dividends, and Transfer Fees
How withholding applies to a non-resident's bank interest, stock dividends, and (for pro athletes) transfer fees, and how treaties reduce it.
Interest piles up in the account — but withholding leaves before it does.
Chapter 6. Business Registration, Tax-related Certificates, and Other Tax Issues
Who Owes VAT, and How to Use Hometax
Whether a foreign business owner owes VAT, and how to register for and use Hometax with an alien registration number.
The tax office window has a line — Hometax is open around the clock.
Getting a Certificate of Income or a Certificate of Residence
How to issue a Certificate of Income or a Certificate of Residence on Hometax — often needed for visa extensions or home-country tax filings.
It's just one sheet of paper — but the one your visa extension can't do without.
Finding Your Tax Office and Checking Business Registration Status
How to find your jurisdictional tax office and check a business registration number's status (or your own) on Hometax.
One business location — one automatically assigned tax office, by address.
National Pension and Health Insurance for Foreigners
National pension enrollment duties (and social security agreement exceptions), plus how local health insurance premiums are calculated.
Premiums go out every month — a single agreement can sometimes waive them.
Reference Materials
Countries With a Korea Tax Treaty and Their Limited Rates
Korea's roughly 98 tax treaty partners, and how to look up the limited rate for interest, dividend, and royalty income by country.
Rates differ by country — the way to look them up doesn't.
Directory of Korean Tax Offices
How Korea's tax office system is organized, and the NTS channels available to foreign taxpayers.
Tax offices are scattered nationwide — the help line is a single number.
Class B Taxpayer Associations
The role of taxpayer associations for Class B wage earners paid from abroad, and the 5% tax credit they unlock.
Your employer can't withhold from abroad — the association steps in instead.
A Complete Guide to Taxpayer Services for Foreigners
Every channel a foreign taxpayer can use — NTS English support, Hometax multilingual features, and KakaoTalk consultation.
There's one tax code — but plenty of doors for getting help with it.
Guide to 12 Common Tax Forms
Form numbers and purposes for 12 documents commonly needed for year-end settlement, income tax filing, and certificate requests.
No need to memorize the form number — knowing what it's for is enough, Hometax finds the rest.