Discussions are underway within the political sphere leaning toward once again postponing the "virtual asset taxation" scheduled to take effect in January next year.

In 2020, an amendment to the Income Tax Act introduced a taxation plan that imposes a 22% tax rate—combining other income tax and local income tax—on annual income generated from the transfer or lending of virtual assets that exceeds a basic deduction of 2.5 million won.

However, its implementation has been delayed three times to date.

While the government has been proceeding with administrative procedures ahead of the implementation scheduled for next January, opinions are gaining traction across the political sphere that the tax should be postponed further, citing an inadequate legal and institutional framework.

Recently, 14 lawmakers from the broader ruling camp, including Representative Park Min-gyu of the Democratic Party of Korea, co-sponsored a bill pushing back the enforcement date to 2029, stating, "The timeline should be adjusted considering that the United States, the world's largest virtual asset market, will join the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 2029."

The People Power Party also supports the postponement, arguing that the taxation infrastructure remains insufficient.

Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party, also appeared on the YouTube broadcast "MinT 07" on October 22 and stated, "This needs to be settled this year," adding that a conclusion on the issue would be reached through intensive consultations between the ruling party and the government.

Cheong Wa Dae is likewise reviewing plans to postpone the taxation based on these views from the political sphere.

While maintaining the stance that nothing has been finalized yet, it appears highly likely that the government will accept the ruling party's position during party-government consultations.

(Photo: Yonhap News)