When you buy a home or land in Korea, the first thing to diarise is the acquisition tax filing and payment deadline. Article 20(1) of the Local Tax Act says to file and pay within 60 days of acquiring for a purchase, 3 months from the end of the month of acquisition for a gift or other free acquisition and a burdened gift, and 6 months from the end of the month inheritance began for inheritance (9 months if an heir lives abroad). If you register earlier, you must pay by the day the registration is filed (para. 4). For a purchase the acquisition date is usually the balance-payment day (Decree Art. 20). Our calculator gives the last day from the type and base date.
1. Purchase or new build: 60 days from acquisition — balance paid on 29 October 2026 gives 28 December 2026.
2. Gift: 3 months from month-end · inheritance: 6 months from month-end (9 with an heir abroad).
3. Registering earlier: by the registration filing day — a deadline on a weekend or public holiday moves to the next day (Framework Act on Local Taxes Art. 24).
Calculator
Updates as you type. Day periods leave out the base date (60 days after it); month periods run from the day after the month-end to the last day of the month k months on. Only Saturdays and Sundays are moved automatically — check public holidays yourself. If you register before the deadline, you must file and pay by the registration filing day.
Deadlines — Local Tax Act Art. 20
| Type | What the source says | Worth noting (ours) |
|---|---|---|
| Para. 1 (paid) | 60 days from acquisition; for land in a land-deal permit zone paid for before the permit, from the permit date (or the lifting or shrinking of the zone) | — |
| Para. 1 (free, burdened gift) | Free acquisition (not inheritance) and burdened gifts: 3 months from the end of the month of acquisition | For a gift the contract date is the acquisition date (Decree Art. 20(1)) |
| Para. 1 (inheritance, missing) | 6 months from the end of the month of the start of inheritance or the missing declaration; 9 months with an heir abroad | — |
| Para. 2 | Later subject to a heavy rate: within 60 days from the day set by decree, the heavy-rate tax less tax already paid (excluding penalties) | The start day is in the Decree, not read this time |
| Para. 3 | Exemption or relief later clawed back: 60 days from the event | Tax already paid is deducted where relief was partial |
| Para. 4 | To register within those periods, file and pay by the day the registration application is received | Register on balance day and that day is the deadline |
The Act requires filing and payment together (“shall file and pay”). Penalties for not filing and for late payment are in late local tax penalties.
When is “the day you acquired it”? — Decree Art. 20
| Type | What the source says | Worth noting (ours) |
|---|---|---|
| Paid purchase (para. 2) | The actual balance-payment day; if unclear, the contract’s balance date; if none, 60 days after the contract | Keep proof of the balance payment (our tip) |
| Free acquisition (para. 1) | The contract date; for inheritance or bequest, when it began | — |
| New build (para. 6) | The earlier of the use approval (or earlier temporary approval) and actual use | — |
| Registered first (para. 14) | If registered before the para. 1, 2 or 5 date, the registration date is the acquisition date | — |
A cancelled contract can fall outside acquisition: within 60 days of acquisition for a purchase, or within 3 months from the end of the month of acquisition for a gift, proven by a court settlement record, notarial deed or cancellation report, provided the property has not been registered (Decree Art. 20(1), (2) provisos).
How the days are counted — Framework Act on Local Taxes
Article 23 of the Framework Act on Local Taxes applies the Civil Act to periods, and Article 24 moves a deadline on a Saturday, Sunday, public or substitute holiday or Labour Day to the next day (read on 28 October for the property tax deferral checker). So “60 days” leaves out the base date and ends on base date + 60 (a balance paid on 29 October 2026 gives 28 December 2026), and “3 months from month-end” starts on the 1st of the next month and ends on the last day of the third month (our method).
Four cases — our example
| Case (our example) | File and pay by | Worth noting (our sum) |
|---|---|---|
| Balance paid 2026-10-29, purchase | 2026-12-28 (Mon) | Day 60 counting from 30 October |
| Gift contract 2026-10-15 | 2027-02-01 (Mon) | 31 January is a Sunday → next day |
| Inheritance began 2026-10-15 | 2027-04-30 (Fri) | With an heir abroad, 2027-07-31 (Sat) → 2027-08-02 (Mon) |
| Balance 2026-10-29, registration filed 2026-11-10 | 2026-11-10 | Para. 4 — by the registration day |
A balance paid on 1 January 2026 reaches day 60 on 2 March 2026. A deadline on a Saturday such as 31 July 2027 moves to Monday; the calculator doesn’t move public holidays, so check those yourself.
Checklist
- ☐ Balance-payment day (contract date for a gift, start of inheritance)
- ☐ Registering before the deadline? Then pay by that day
- ☐ Does the last day fall on a weekend or public holiday?
- ☐ With officetels or several homes, check the count and rate
- ☐ If you got relief, diarise when a clawback could arise
Questions that remain
How much is the acquisition tax?
Rates and amounts are in the acquisition tax calculator. Whether an officetel you own counts as a home is in the officetel house count checker.
I got first-home relief — does selling create a new deadline?
If the relief is clawed back, Art. 20(3) gives 60 days from the event. Conditions and clawbacks are in the first-home acquisition tax relief calculator.
Sources
- Korean law database (law.go.kr) — Local Tax Act Art. 20 — source (current text, effective 1 July 2026, Act No. 21308; checked 29 October 2026). Para. 1 (60 days, 3, 6 and 9 months from month-end, the land permit bracket), para. 2 (heavy rate, 60 days), para. 3 (clawback, 60 days), para. 4 (by the registration filing day), paras. 5–6 (creditor subrogation).
- Korean law database — Local Tax Act Enforcement Decree Art. 20 — source (current text, effective 1 October 2026, Decree No. 36736; checked 29 October 2026). Acquisition dates for free and paid acquisitions and cancellation proof, new builds, earlier registration.
- Korean law database — Framework Act on Local Taxes Arts. 23–24 — source (effective 2 October 2026, Act No. 22017; checked 28 October 2026). Civil Act counting; weekend and holiday deadlines move to the next day.
- Not read. Art. 21 (shortfall and penalties) in detail; the decree day in para. 2; the Wetax filing steps.
- What we added. The “worth noting” column and the Korean everyday gloss.
Where to check further
- Local government tax office or Wetax — filing and payment.
- Certified judicial scrivener — lining up the registration day with payment.
Written on 29 October 2026. The content is from the source; the glosses are ours.
