'Multi-homeowners Tax Increase' Real Estate 3 Acts Pass Plenary Session... United Future Party Abstains from Vote (Update)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporters Kim Hyemin and Lim Chunhan] The National Assembly passed a real estate tax law amendment on the 4th that strengthens the tax burden on multi-homeowners and multi-homeowner corporations.

On the same day at 2 p.m., the National Assembly held a plenary session and consecutively approved amendments to the Income Tax Act, Corporate Tax Act, and Comprehensive Real Estate Holding Tax (Jongbu Tax) Act containing these provisions.

The Income Tax Act was passed with 188 votes in favor out of 190 members present, the Corporate Tax Act with 185 votes in favor out of 187 present, and the Jongbu Tax Act with 186 votes in favor out of 188 present. The United Future Party boycotted the vote in protest of the bill's passage process.

The Income Tax Act mainly raises the capital gains tax surcharge rate applied when a person owning two or more houses in designated adjustment areas sells a house by 20 percentage points for two-homeowners and 30 percentage points for those owning three or more homes. If a house is sold within one year of ownership, a capital gains tax rate of 70% is applied, and if sold within two years, a 60% rate is applied. With the passage of this law, cooperative member move-in rights and pre-sale rights are also included as houses.

The Corporate Tax Act mainly increases the additional corporate tax rate on corporate housing capital gains from the current 10% to 20%. The Jongbu Tax Act raises the comprehensive real estate holding tax rate for those owning three or more houses and two houses in designated adjustment areas from the previous 0.6?3.2% to 1.2?6%. For single-household single-homeowners and those owning two or fewer houses in general, the rate was raised from the current 0.5?2.7% to 0.6?3%.