South Korea's National Tax Service Steps Up Preparations for Crypto Tax Launch in 2027

According to ChainCatcher, South Korea's National Tax Service (NTS) has begun ramping up preparations to tax virtual assets, targeting an official rollout in January 2027 and readiness for the May 2028 comprehensive income tax filing season. Under the current Income Tax Act, income from the transfer and leasing of virtual assets will be treated as "other income". Annual gains above KRW 2.5 million would be taxed at 22%, potentially affecting about 13.26 million people. The NTS plans to start gathering transaction data next year from exchanges including Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, Korbit and Gopax, as it strengthens its tax infrastructure. It also aims to roll out a comprehensive virtual-asset analytics system by the end of this year. Debate continues over tax benchmarks and concerns about potential capital outflows.