South Korea to Tax Crypto Gains Over $1,740 Starting 2027

South Korea is moving forward with plans to tax cryptocurrency gains, signaling a political battle in the country's parliament. The country will impose a combined tax of up to 22% on annual crypto gains exceeding 2.5 million won ($1,740), starting January 1, 2027. This tax, originally scheduled for January 2022 and postponed until 2025, was delayed again by two years in a December 2024 amendment. Deputy Prime Minister Koo Yun-cheol confirmed the plan during a July 29 meeting of the National Assembly’s Finance and Economy Planning Committee. Under the current framework, income from transferring or lending crypto will be taxed separately as 'other income.' Investors will receive an annual deduction of 2.5 million won, with gains above that threshold subject to a 20% national tax rate or 22% including local income tax, according to Korea’s National Tax Service. Opposition leader Kim Sang-hoon criticized the lack of loss carryforwards, warning that investors could shift activity to overseas centralized exchanges, decentralized platforms, or peer-to-peer markets. He argued that taxation should wait until the OECD’s cross-border Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework is fully operational. A bill introduced in March aims to abolish the tax by removing crypto income from the Income Tax Act. The bill was taken up by the Committee on July 29 and referred to a subcommittee. Unless lawmakers repeal or further delay the provisions, the tax will take effect January 1, 2027. Koo noted that such a change would require a broader and more systematic review of South Korea’s capital-market tax regime to determine if crypto profits would be treated as capital gains. Anvil is a shared on-chain collateral layer built on a programmable letter of credit: reserve assets as a guarantee—no loan, no interest, keep custody & yield.