Gangnam District Moves to Prevent Corporate Tax Errors; Ministry Official to Lead Briefing

Tax Briefing for Small and Venture Companies to Be Held at COEX on the 29th

Gangnam District in Seoul (District Mayor Kim Hyungi) will hold a tax briefing featuring experts from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety to help reduce the number of companies that miss out on tax benefits because they misunderstand tax laws or face additional tax bills later. The district aims to inform companies in advance about mistakes identified in tax audits and court rulings.

Gangnam District Office building. Photo courtesy of Gangnam District.

Gangnam District announced on October 8 that it will hold a “Tax Briefing for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Startup Venture Companies” at the COEX Startup Branch on October 29. The briefing is intended for around 100 executives and employees of small and medium-sized enterprises and startup venture companies. Invitees include for-profit corporations headquartered in the district that acquired real estate through purchase or new construction, as well as corporations that received local tax reductions, among the 1,172 corporations that acquired real estate in Gangnam District last year and filed acquisition tax returns.

The district is holding the briefing after finding cases in which companies paid more tax because they were unaware of the relevant rules during tax audits. In the first half of this year, the district investigated sophisticated tax evasion, including the use of sham headquarters, and recouped 15.5 billion won in acquisition taxes and other taxes. The investigation uncovered not only intentional tax evasion but also cases in which companies owed additional taxes because they did not properly understand the requirements for tax reductions or the rules for post-reduction compliance.

Post-reduction compliance is a requirement that companies can easily overlook. Corporations that receive tax reductions must use the real estate for the purpose for which the reduction was granted within a specified period. They must also refrain from selling it or using it for another purpose for a certain period afterward. The relevant laws and regulations also change frequently.

In Part 1, from 10:15 a.m. to 12:35 p.m., Seo Wonju, an official with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety’s Local Tax Policy Division, will give a presentation. The presentation will cover two topics related to the acquisition stage: indirect costs included in the tax base for newly constructed buildings and how to allocate interest on construction loans; and the acquisition tax surcharge on real estate used for headquarters operations in large cities. For the period after acquisition, it will review cases of additional tax assessments resulting from the establishment of branch offices, as well as post-reduction compliance requirements that must be met after an exemption from surcharges or a tax reduction. The briefing will also cover local tax laws and regulations revised in 2026, recent cases of additional tax assessments, and an acquisition tax self-assessment checklist.

In Part 2, from 12:35 p.m. to 2 p.m., one-on-one tax consultations will be offered to corporations that registered in advance. Tax accountants affiliated with the Korea Association of Certified Public Tax Accountants and officials from the district’s Property Tax Division will provide consultations on national and local taxes in one place. The Korea International Trade Association will provide the venue free of charge, while the Korea Association of Certified Public Tax Accountants will provide national tax consultations on a pro bono basis.

This is the second year the district has held the briefing. It held the first briefing in October last year, when around 100 corporate executives and employees attended a presentation on local tax reduction programs and received one-on-one consultations. The district said it was the first local government in the country to hold such a briefing last year.

“Companies that want to pay their taxes honestly should not be disadvantaged because they are unfamiliar with complex regulations,” District Mayor Kim Hyungi said. “We will strengthen preventive tax administration by sharing cases identified during tax audits with companies and create an environment in which they can operate with stability.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.