South Korea plans to tax crypto gains

The South Korean government wants to start taxing residents’ cryptocurrency-related profits.

The country’s Ministry of Economy and Finance is pushing for the measure to be implemented next year, local news outlet The Korea Times reported Sunday, citing “government sources.”

THE SCOOP

Keep up with the latest news, trends, charts and views on crypto and DeFi with a new biweekly newsletter from The Block's Frank Chaparro

By signing-up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
By signing-up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

"Related discussions have been taking place. The revised bill will be drawn up by the first half of next year," an anonymous ministry official told the news outlet.

The government is reportedly seeking to levy capital gains tax on cryptocurrencies regardless of the bill's passage. To that end, the government will need to have a precise definition of cryptocurrencies and decide how it will tax crypto gains - in line with stocks or real estate capital gains, per the report. The government will also reportedly have to get trading records from cryptocurrency exchanges in order to levy taxes accordingly.

Just last month, Ukraine also proposed a draft bill to tax crypto gains. If the bill gets passed, the European country will levy an initial 5% tax on crypto gains for the first five years. Post that period, the standard rate of 18% could apply.

About Author

Yogita Khatri is a senior reporter at The Block, covering all things crypto. As one of the earliest team members, Yogita has played a pivotal role in breaking numerous stories, exclusives and scoops. With nearly 3,000 articles under her belt, Yogita holds the records as The Block's most-published and most-read author of all time. Prior to joining The Block, Yogita worked at crypto publication CoinDesk and The Economic Times, where she wrote on personal finance. To contact her, email: [email protected]. For her latest work, follow her on X @Yogita_Khatri5.