Anchor: The state tax agency has advised the country’s 700-thousand foreign workers to file the required documents for their year-end tax settlements. What’s different this year is that they can now get an income tax deduction for their home-purchase savings.
Choi You Sun reports.

Report: Starting this year, foreign laborers will be eligible for an earned income tax deduction for the money they’ve saved toward the purchase of a home.

According to the National Tax Service on Wednesday, foreign residents with earnings of up to 70 million won, or around 48-thousand U.S. dollars, can receive a 40 percent deduction for their home-purchase savings last year as long as they aren’t married to homeowners.  

Foreign workers providing technology under engineering technology contracts, as well as those with graduate degrees in the natural sciences or engineering with overseas experience in research and development, will be eligible for a reduced tax rate of 50 percent for ten years.

People designated as outstanding overseas talent under the Special Act on High-Tech Industry Talent Innovation will get a reduced rate of tax on income earned after February 28, 2025.

Native language teachers from countries that have a let-out clause for teachers and professors in their tax treaties with South Korea may be eligible for a reduced rate of tax on income related to lectures and research.

Foreign workers can choose to be taxed on their income at a flat rate of 19 percent for 20 years, albeit without tax benefits, to potentially lower their tax liability and simplify the process, or opt for the progressive tax rates that correspond to their income levels.

The tax agency provides information about the year-end tax adjustment on its English website in English, Chinese and Vietnamese, and individual consultations are available through its English call center at 1588-0560.
Choi You Sun, KBS World Radio News.