South Korea Seeks to Delay Crypto Tax Until 2029

| unchainedcrypto.com
South Korea’s finance ministry plans to ask the National Assembly to delay the crypto tax from January 2027 to 2029. The proposal is not final and requires amendments to the Income Tax Act. The ruling Democratic Party has also backed a delay. The planned crypto tax remains 22%—including local tax—on annual gains above 2.5 million won (about $1,900). The government also proposes allowing investors to carry forward losses for three years. A working group is expected to review outstanding issues in the first half of 2027, while detailed guidance is planned for the first half of 2028. Officials say the delay would give South Korea more time to prepare for crypto-asset information sharing with the US under the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF), planned for 2029, and to address changes under the Digital Assets Act. The crypto tax has been postponed several times since it was first scheduled for 2022. For traders, the proposal may reduce near-term tax uncertainty, but the rate, threshold and eventual start date remain subject to legislative approval.
Neutral
The proposed delay is not a direct catalyst for any specific cryptocurrency, and the summaries identify no individual coin or token. In the short term, news of a possible postponement could ease concerns among South Korean investors about near-term tax costs and support trading activity at the margin. However, the proposal is not yet law, so uncertainty remains until the National Assembly changes the Income Tax Act. Over the longer term, a 22% tax on annual gains above 2.5 million won could affect investor behavior and local market participation if implemented, while the proposed three-year loss carry-forward could soften its impact. Aligning the schedule with CARF and the Digital Assets Act may also bring greater regulatory clarity, but these developments are unlikely to determine broad crypto prices on their own. As the change affects taxation rather than a cryptocurrency’s underlying demand or supply, the expected direct price impact is neutral.