Jan-Mar National Tax Revenue Decreases by 2.2 Trillion Won... Corporate Tax Plummets 22%

National tax revenue from the beginning of this year through March decreased by 2.2 trillion won compared to last year, when the largest-ever tax shortfall occurred. This decline is attributed to a sharp drop in corporate tax revenue due to worsening corporate earnings.

According to the national tax revenue status announced by the Ministry of Economy and Finance on the 30th, national tax revenue from January to March totaled 84.9 trillion won, down 2.2 trillion won (2.5%) from the same period last year. The progress rate against this year's national tax revenue budget was 23.1%, lower than last year's 25.3%. It is also 2.8 percentage points below the recent five-year average of 25.9%.

The decrease in corporate tax, one of the three major tax categories along with value-added tax and income tax, influenced the decline in national tax revenue. Corporate tax revenue in March was 15.3 trillion won, a sharp drop of 5.6 trillion won (26.9%) compared to the same month last year.

This is due to operating profits of individual companies last year falling sharply compared to the previous year?45.0% for KOSPI-listed companies and 35.4% for KOSDAQ-listed companies. In particular, large corporations with a significant share of corporate tax, such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, suffered a major impact as they reported operating losses and paid no corporate tax.

As a result, cumulative corporate tax revenue from January to March was 18.7 trillion won, down 5.5 trillion won (22.8%) from the same period last year. The progress rate of corporate tax against the budget is 24.1%, which is not only lower than last year's 30.2% but also below the recent five-year average of 29.6%.

During the same period, income tax revenue was 27.5 trillion won, down 700 billion won (2.5%) from last year. Although interest income tax increased due to high interest rates, earned income tax decreased as major companies reduced performance bonuses.

Earned income tax collected was 16.8 trillion won, down 1.7 trillion won from last year. Value-added tax increased by 3.7 trillion won (22.5%) compared to last year, totaling 20.2 trillion won, due to increased filing and payment and decreased refunds.