Gangnam-gu, Seoul's First Autonomous District to Establish 'Living Condition Survey Team' for Delinquent Tax Collection

Formed a 15-member tax officer investigation team from March to October to conduct on-site investigations of 4,167 people... After a living condition survey, tailored collection methods were found... Welfare support linked for low-income defaulters, strengthened on-site collection for intentional evaders

Gangnam-gu (District Mayor Jo Seong-myeong) has established the first Delinquent Taxpayer Living Condition Investigation Team among Seoul's autonomous districts.

The Living Condition Investigation Team represents a new concept of investigation that goes beyond the traditional collection-focused surveys by thoroughly examining the circumstances such as the payment ability of delinquent taxpayers and implementing customized delinquent tax collection. The plan is to actively support economic recovery by identifying increasing numbers of small-scale delinquent taxpayers due to prolonged economic recession, high interest rates, and high inflation, while strengthening on-site collection activities against habitual and intentional tax evaders.

The district formed the investigation team with 15 tax officials, and from March to October, teams of two will conduct on-site investigations.

The investigation targets 4,167 individuals with a total delinquent amount of 12 billion KRW. The targets were selected considering the effectiveness of on-site collection and the impact of prolonged high interest rates and inflation, focusing on those with delinquency periods of three years or less and delinquent amounts between 1 million KRW and 10 million KRW.

Based on the on-site investigation results, the team listens to the difficulties faced by delinquent taxpayers and analyzes their living conditions from multiple angles to find customized collection methods. For those struggling with livelihood, welfare support is prioritized to help them regain self-sufficiency; if immediate payment is difficult, installment payments are encouraged, and temporary suspension of vehicle license plate seizure is applied to assist economic recovery. Individuals or corporate businesses struggling to pay due to the economic downturn will be helped to defer delinquent tax measures, and guidance on small and medium enterprise loans will be provided.

On the other hand, intentional tax evaders and malicious delinquent taxpayers who avoid payment or conceal assets will be induced to pay through various administrative sanctions. Additionally, joint home searches with Seoul City will be conducted to strengthen on-site collection and improve collection efficiency.

Jo Seong-myeong, Mayor of Gangnam-gu, stated, “We are pursuing delinquent tax collection in various ways to ensure tax fairness with taxpayers who faithfully pay their taxes,” and added, “Through the customized delinquent tax collection by the newly established Living Condition Investigation Team, we will promote tax administration that resonates with the residents.”