Every August a small bill arrives in Korean households — the resident tax (jumin-se). The amount is small enough that most people pay without reading, but who pays, who is left out and why the amount differs by neighbourhood are all written in the statute. We read Articles 74 to 84-7 of the Local Tax Act in the original.
1. There are three resident taxes. The individual portion, the business-place portion and the employee portion (Article 74).
2. The individual portion: reference date 1 July, payable 16 to 31 August. The rate is set by local ordinance within a ceiling of 10,000 won (Articles 78 and 79).
3. The business-place portion is filed and paid 1 to 31 August. The employee portion is monthly, by the 10th of the following month.
Three resident taxes — Article 74
| Type | Charged on | When |
|---|---|---|
| Individual portion | An individual with an address in the local government | 16 to 31 August each year (by bill) |
| Business-place portion | A business owner with a business place — the place and its floor area are the tax base | 1 to 31 August each year (file and pay) |
| Employee portion | A business owner paying wages — total payroll is the tax base | Monthly, by the 10th of the following month (file and pay) |
The "When" column is taken from Articles 79, 83 and 84-6. The local income tax that rides on income is not a resident tax but a separate tax — it sits in its own chapter of the Act (Chapter 8).
The individual portion — who pays and who is left out
The taxpayer is an individual with an address in the local government as of the reference date (Article 75(1)). The reference date is 1 July each year (Article 79(2)). The following are excluded.
- Recipients under the National Basic Living Security Act
- Minors — except that a minor who forms the same registered household with an adult is taken out of this exclusion
- Household members under the Resident Registration Act and equivalent persons prescribed by Presidential Decree
- Foreigners for whom 1 year has not passed since alien registration
Because household members are excluded, the structure reads as one bill per household, ordinarily addressed to the head of household (our reading). The scope of "persons prescribed by Presidential Decree" is in the Decree, which we did not read this time. For a foreigner the place of stay under the Immigration Act is used in place of an address (the parenthesis in Article 75(1)).
1 July is the dividing line
| Situation (example) | Address on 1 July | Where it is paid |
|---|---|---|
| Moved from city A to city B on 20 June | City B | City B |
| Moved from city A to city B on 10 July | City A | City A (the bill is issued in August) |
The table is our application of "the place of tax payment for the individual portion is the address as of the reference date" (Article 76(1)). It means that after a July move the August bill comes from the old local government — if no bill reached you after moving, look it up on Wetax.
Why the amount differs by neighbourhood — Article 78
The Act says the rate of the individual portion is set by ordinance of the head of the local government within a range not exceeding 10,000 won. It fixes only the ceiling and leaves the amount to the ordinance. On top of that, where residents request it, the rate may be set differently by eup, myeon or dong within a range not exceeding 15,000 won (Article 78(2)). So the amount can differ even between districts of one city.
Your own amount is on the bill or in your local ordinance. We did not read individual ordinances, and did not check whether any other tax is printed on the same bill.
The business-place portion — a base rate plus a floor-area charge
A sole proprietor can also be liable — the Act names "an individual with a business place of at least the size prescribed by Presidential Decree" and "a corporation with a business place" (Article 75(2)). A person whose business has been suspended continuously for 1 year or more as of the reference date is excluded.
| Category | Rate (Article 81) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Owner is an individual | 50,000 won | Base rate |
| Corporation, capital up to 3 billion won | 50,000 won | "Other corporations" are also 50,000 won |
| Corporation, over 3 billion up to 5 billion won | 100,000 won | By capital or investment amount |
| Corporation, over 5 billion won | 200,000 won | — |
| Floor-area charge | 250 won per square metre | 500 won for pollutant-discharging business places |
The tax is the sum of the base rate and the floor-area charge. However, where the floor area of the business place is 330 square metres or less, the floor-area charge is not imposed (Article 82). A local government may by ordinance raise or lower the base rate and the 250 won rate each within 50 percent (Article 81(2)).
Our arithmetic (individual owner, no ordinance adjustment assumed). Floor area 300 square metres → 330 or less, so 50,000 won. Floor area 500 square metres → 50,000 won + 500 × 250 won = 175,000 won. The "size" that brings an individual into the tax is in the Decree, which we did not read — check with your local government whether you are covered.
The business-place portion is in principle self-assessed, but the head of the local government may send a payment slip, and paying the amount on that slip by 31 August is treated as having filed and paid (Article 83(4) and (5)).
The employee portion — 5/1000 of total payroll
- The tax base is the total wages for that month paid to employees (Article 84-2).
- The standard rate is 5/1000 of total payroll, adjustable by ordinance within 50 percent (Article 84-3).
- It is not imposed where the monthly average payroll over the latest 1 year is at or below "the amount prescribed by Presidential Decree multiplied by 50" (Article 84-4, the exemption point).
- The tax for each month is filed and paid by the 10th of the following month (Article 84-6).
Our arithmetic. A business place with a monthly payroll of 200 million won owes 200 million won × 0.5% = 1,000,000 won (standard rate, assuming it is above the exemption point). The amount that sets the exemption point is in the Decree, which we did not read. The employee portion is paid by the business owner, not by the employees.
Checklist
- ☐ Where your address was on 1 July (that local government bills you)
- ☐ Whether you paid the individual portion by 31 August
- ☐ If you run a business, whether the business-place portion applies and whether the floor area exceeds 330 square metres
- ☐ If the employee portion applies, whether the filing by the 10th of each month is in hand
Questions that remain
Does a university student living alone pay?
The Act excludes minors, household members, benefit recipients and foreigners registered for less than 1 year. An adult who is a separate household at their own address does not appear to fall under any exclusion (our reading) — confirm actual billing with the local government.
What if I miss the deadline?
Missing the due date on a bill adds 3% of the tax, and where the tax is 450,000 won or more a further 0.66% for each month — under 450,000 won, as with the individual portion, it is the 3% only. The provisions and arithmetic are in penalties on local taxes.
What about other local tax dates?
They are set out month by month in the tax calendar, and the automobile tax is in the automobile tax guide.
Sources
- Local Tax Act [in force 1 July 2026] [Act No. 21308, partially amended 31 December 2025] — original text (checked 7 October 2026). Article 74 (definitions), Article 75 (taxpayers), Article 76 (place of payment), Article 78 (10,000 won; 15,000 won), Article 79 (1 July; 16 to 31 August), Article 81 (50,000; 100,000; 200,000 won; 250 won; 500 won), Article 82 (330 square metres), Article 83 (1 to 31 August), Articles 84-2 to 84-6 (5/1000; the 10th of the following month).
- Not read. The Enforcement Decree of the Local Tax Act (persons equivalent to household members, the size of an individual's business place, the exemption-point amount, the scope of floor area), and individual local ordinances (penalties under the Framework Act on Local Taxes were read afterwards and are set out in penalties on local taxes).
- Our reading and arithmetic. Billing to the head of household, the moving example table, 175,000 won, 1,000,000 won.
Where to check further
- Wetax — look up and pay local tax bills.
- The tax office of your city, county or district — your local individual-portion amount and whether the business-place portion applies.
Written on 7 October 2026. The provisions follow the original text at the Korea Law Information Center; the reading and arithmetic are ours.
