South Korea: fourth delay to its crypto tax, now aiming for 2029
How many delays can a tax take before it even starts to apply?
South Korea’s government announced on November 5, 2026 that it is seeking to push back its 22% tax on cryptocurrency gains to 2029, while also proposing a three-year loss carryforward. It would be the fourth delay, if approved by the National Assembly: until the law changes, the scheduled start remains January 1, 2027.
Why is a new delay to the crypto tax being proposed?
The main obstacle, according to the government, is the lack of data on trades at overseas exchanges. When someone transfers tokens bought elsewhere to a Korean exchange, the platform may not know the purchase price. Without it, how can the gain be calculated correctly?
According to Bitcoin Magazine, Finance Minister Lee Hyeong-il tied the delay to data sharing between South Korea and the US, which is expected to start in 2029 through the OECD’s Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF). The government argues this will let it treat users of domestic and US exchanges equally.
It also wants to align the tax with the proposed digital asset law. Exchanges have also pointed out that unclear reporting requirements are delaying the development and testing of their systems.
How will the 22% tax be calculated?
The rate doesn’t change: the tax will apply to annual net income from selling or lending crypto assets above 2.5 million won. The overall 22% consists of a 20% national tax and a 2% local tax.
BeInCrypto’s example shows the calculation: on annual gains of 5 million won, the tax comes to 550,000 won. In other words, the amount above the threshold is taxed, not the full gain.
The new proposal adds a loss carryforward, i.e. the ability to offset a realized loss against gains in later years. Losses from 2029 could be offset against gains through 2032. Losses from before the tax takes effect will not be eligible, according to the government proposal.
Has the move to 2029 been approved?
The move to 2029 is a government goal, not yet a change passed into law. It requires an amendment to the Income Tax Act before the scheduled January start.
The distinction matters, because the sources don’t all present the development with the same certainty. Bitcoin Magazine and Cointelegraph say parliamentary approval is required, while the available CryptoSlate excerpt notes that tax guidance still refers to January 1, 2027 and that the new date has not been finalized.
The tax was enacted in 2020 to take effect in 2022 and was successively pushed back to 2023, 2025 and 2027. The government now plans to review the rules by the first half of 2027 and issue detailed tax guidance by the first half of 2028.
What does it mean for the market and for readers in Greece?
The proposal gives the Korean market more time to prepare, but keeps the uncertainty over the final implementation. We see the effort to tie the tax to available data and loss offsetting as positive. On the other hand, the repeated delays make planning harder for investors and businesses.
For readers in Greece, the rates and deadlines in this story apply only to South Korea, not to Greek tax treatment. Our takeaway is the practical problem: without a history of purchases, sales and transfers between platforms, even a tax written into law can remain on paper.