Korea tax guide
Korea Income Tax Filing Guide for Foreigners
Income Tax
Who this guide is for
- Foreign employees deciding whether employer settlement was enough
- Freelancers and employees with side income
- People with multiple employers or an arrival/departure year
- Foreign residents unsure which income belongs in the Korean filing review
Quick Answer
Begin with your tax residence, income categories, and whether salary was fully settled. The NTS generally exempts salary-only earners who completed year-end settlement from a separate final return, but identifies exceptions such as uncombined income from multiple employers or no settlement. Business, mixed, and cross-border income need their own review. Nationality, a visa label, withholding, or a missing filing notice alone does not settle the question.
Key points
- Confirm whether every salary payer was included in year-end settlement.
- Separate wage, business, and other income before selecting a return.
- Tax residence needs its own review; nationality and visa status are not a complete tax test.
- Use the preparation guide after deciding which filing route applies.
Detailed explanation
Decide the filing route before opening a return
This page helps you answer which filing obligation to check. Once your route is clear, use the global income tax preparation and submission checklist to reconcile figures and complete the filing record. For screen navigation, use the separate Hometax procedure.
Start with one row for every payer and income category in the relevant year. A useful first record is: payer, work or transaction, gross amount, withholding, document received, and whether that item was included in a settlement or return. Do not begin by adding only the amounts deposited into your bank account.
Check salary settlement first
The NTS overview generally excludes salary-only earners with completed year-end settlement from a separate final return. It also lists exceptions, including multiple-payer income not properly combined and cases with no year-end settlement.
Ask payroll for the actual settlement result and withholding receipt. “Tax was deducted every month” does not answer whether annual settlement was completed or covered every employer.
| Your situation | First evidence to inspect | Next review |
|---|---|---|
| One salary payer, no other income, completed settlement | Final wage withholding receipt and settlement result | Confirm no filing exception or omitted item applies |
| Changed jobs during the year | Receipts from both employers and the final employer’s combined settlement | Check whether the earlier salary was included |
| Two concurrent salary jobs | Each receipt and any combined settlement result | Review any salary that remains uncombined |
| Salary plus recurring independent work | Salary settlement plus client statements and work facts | Review the separate income classification and annual filing |
| Independent work without salary | Payer statements, contracts, withholding, and expense records | Check business/other-income treatment and the applicable return |
| Overseas income, arrival, departure, or uncertain residence | Residence facts, work locations, dates, and foreign records | Resolve income scope and treaty questions before choosing amounts |
The table is a route finder. It does not declare that every side payment is taxable in the same way or that every employee needs another return.
Use concrete examples to test your records
A job change with combined settlement: Mira worked for Employer A and then Employer B. B’s final receipt includes A’s salary in the settlement. The next check is whether she has any other income or filing exception; the job change alone is not a reason to report the same salary twice.
A job change with separate settlements: Daniel has two employer receipts, and neither settlement includes the other employer’s salary. He should investigate the final-return requirement using both receipts, rather than assuming two separate payroll settlements covered the combined annual position.
Salary and independent work: An employer settled Lina’s wages, while a client separately reported her recurring translation work. Her salary paperwork does not explain the client’s payment classification or business records. She needs an income-category review before preparing any comprehensive return.
These fictional examples illustrate questions to resolve. They do not calculate tax or establish an exemption for a reader’s case.
Resolve residence and income scope separately
The NTS’s current foreign-worker guidance describes residence through a Korean domicile or at least 183 days of residence, with facts such as work, family, and assets relevant to the domicile analysis. Counting days alone can therefore miss the issue.
Prepare a short timeline if you arrived, left, worked remotely for a foreign employer, or have income from another country. Record where work was performed, when income arose, and what foreign tax documents exist. Use the residence guide and overseas income guide to identify the questions to take to the NTS or a qualified adviser. A foreign bank account or foreign payer is not enough information to decide the Korean treatment.
Match the income year to the correct filing season
The NTS English filing information gives the ordinary comprehensive-income filing period as May 1–31 of the following year, with a separate June period for taxpayers subject to professional return review. Check the current notice for holidays, special deadlines, and your own category.
As of this review on October 26, 2026, the ordinary filing season for 2025 income has passed. If a 2025 return was missed, investigate the late-filing route. For 2026 income, keep records during 2026 and check the applicable instructions for the following filing season. Do not select the current income year merely because that is the year in which you are using Hometax.
Finish triage with a written decision
Before preparing figures, record the income year, each income category, whether salary was combined and settled, any unresolved residence issue, and the filing route you need to confirm. Then move to the preparation checklist.
If the only immediate task is to provide an existing income certificate to another institution, begin with choosing the correct certificate. A document deadline should prompt an early check of the records; it should not determine which tax return you submit.
Documents you may need
- A payer-by-payer income list for the relevant year
- Wage withholding receipts and year-end settlement result
- Business or freelance payment and withholding statements
- Arrival/departure dates and residence facts for cross-border review
- Any NTS filing notice and previous return for the same year
Common mistakes
- Filing twice because each employer issued a separate receipt
- Assuming a changed job always requires a separate return even after combined settlement
- Treating 3.3% withholding as a final answer to annual filing
- Assuming fewer than 183 days in Korea always means nonresident
- Filing only to obtain a visa document without checking the tax facts
When should you ask a tax professional?
Ask a qualified tax professional if you have income from several countries, business income, unclear tax residency, treaty questions, missing documents, late filing concerns, or a visa situation that depends on tax records. This site explains general patterns only and cannot review your personal facts.
FAQ
Does every foreign employee need a separate May return?
No. The NTS lists salary-only earners who completed year-end settlement among those generally not required to file a separate final return. Check its exceptions, especially incomplete settlement or salary from multiple payers that was not combined.
I changed jobs. Do I automatically have to file again?
First check whether the final employer included the earlier employer's income in year-end settlement. A job change and an incomplete combined settlement are different facts.
Does 3.3% withholding finish my tax filing?
Do not use the withholding percentage alone to decide. Confirm the income classification, total annual records, settlement status, and applicable filing rules.
Does global income tax always mean all worldwide income?
The Korean term is comprehensive income tax, 종합소득세. Whether a particular foreign item is taxable requires a separate residence, source, treaty, and other applicable-rule review.
What if I should have filed for an earlier year?
Check the return history and use the appropriate late-filing or correction route for that year. A new current-year return or a certificate request does not repair an earlier filing by itself.
Official Sources to Verify
Check the tax year, eligibility conditions, and publication date in the official material before applying a rule. A link marked “Service portal” helps you find a service; it does not substantiate a particular rate or entitlement.