Can I expense a drone aircraft immediately in the year I buy it, just like a camera?
Drone aircraft, gimbals, and spare batteries are mostly high-value assets well above 1,000,000 KRW, so expensing them in full in the year of purchase can be flagged in a tax audit for failing to follow depreciable-asset rules. It is safer to expense them gradually according to useful life, and we also recommend consistently tracking aerial filming permit/flight approval fees and liability insurance premiums as necessary expenses for running the business.
The most confusing part — depreciation on high-value aircraft
Unit prices are higher than an ordinary camera, so misclassifying assets can cause problems in a tax audit
Expensing the full amount in the year of purchase is risky
Drone aircraft, gimbals, and spare batteries are mostly high-value assets well over 1,000,000 KRW. Expensing them in full immediately upon purchase can be flagged in a tax audit for failing to follow depreciable-asset rules, so they must be expensed gradually according to useful life.
Do not miss permit and insurance costs either
Aerial filming permit fees, flight approval application costs, and liability insurance premiums are recognized as necessary expenses for running the business. Since these are small amounts incurred before every shoot, they are easy to miss, so keep receipts consistently.
Income structure of the drone & aerial photography business
Key expense categories
Must-read for drone & aerial photographers
Sort drone equipment and subscriptions by category to save on taxes
From aircraft and gimbals to assistant pilot labor costs, sorting each item correctly reduces unnecessary tax
Long-term fixed assets — depreciable equipment
Drone aircraft: filming drones (multiple aircraft rotated in use)
Gimbal camera: gimbal/camera modules mounted on the aircraft
Control/monitoring equipment: controller, FPV goggles/monitor
Anything over 1,000,000 KRW per unit is classified as a depreciable asset and must be expensed gradually over its useful life.
Consumables/rentals — expensed immediately
Consumables: multiple spare batteries, propellers, charging stations, ND filter sets
Rentals: short-term rental of cinema-grade large drones
Consumable spending and usage fees that are not assets are expensed in full at the time of purchase or payment.
Personal service costs — assistant staff withholding
Amounts paid per contract to visual observers (VO) and ground crew who assist with flight safety are business income subject to 3.3% withholding, filed and paid by the 10th of the following month.
Post-production/subscriptions
Aerial footage color-grading software, GIS software for surveying/mapping, and cloud/NAS storage costs for backing up footage are recurring monthly expenses and are expensed in full at the time of payment.
| Category | Examples | Tax treatment |
|---|---|---|
| Long-term fixed assets | Drone aircraft, gimbal camera, controller | Depreciated if over 1,000,000 KRW |
| Consumables/rentals | Spare batteries/propellers, large drone rental | Expensed in full immediately |
| Personal services | Visual observer (VO), ground crew | 3.3% withholding, filed by the 10th of the following month |
| Post-production/subscriptions | Color-grading/GIS software, cloud/NAS | Expensed immediately |