National Tax Service Holds Meeting on "Tax Support for Young Entrepreneurs"
The government has decided to expand a variety of tax support policies tailored for young people, so that they can focus on their business activities with peace of mind. To this end, young entrepreneurs who run small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and meet job creation requirements will be exempt from regular tax audits and may have tax audits deferred for up to two years.
The National Tax Service announced on the 18th that it held a meeting on the 17th at Pangyo Startup Zone, located in Pangyo Second Techno Valley, under the theme "Tax Support for Young Entrepreneurs," where these measures were discussed.
Kwanghyun Lim, Commissioner of the National Tax Service, held a meeting on the 17th at Pangyo Startup Zone located in Pangyo Second Techno Valley under the theme "Tax Support for Young Entrepreneurs," explaining the tax support measures. National Tax Service
On this day, Kwanghyun Lim, Commissioner of the National Tax Service, stated, "Young entrepreneurship is no longer a choice for a select few, but has become an important growth engine for our economy," and added, "The National Tax Service will continue to actively listen to the voices of young entrepreneurs on the ground and do its utmost to ensure that they can focus on their business activities with confidence."
According to the National Tax Service, the number of young entrepreneurs (aged 19 to 34) steadily increased over the past 10 years (2015-2024), peaking at 396,000 in 2021, but has since declined to 350,000 in 2024.
The industries of interest for young entrepreneurs have shifted from traditional service sectors to digital, content, and online industries. With the spread of non-face-to-face consumption culture such as online marketplaces and the rapid growth of the digital content market, online-based businesses-including e-commerce, overseas direct purchasing agencies, and media content creation-are continuing to expand.
Changes are also evident in the average sales and one-year survival rate of young entrepreneurs. Thanks to innovative ideas and proactive market entry, the average sales of young entrepreneurs as a percentage of all entrepreneurs' average sales improved from 79.9% ten years ago to 89.8%. However, due to intensified market competition and lack of capital, the one-year survival rate after founding a business fell from 76.8% ten years ago to 75.3%. The National Tax Service analyzed that this demonstrates the need for customized tax support policies tailored to each stage of the business cycle to enhance the sustainability of young entrepreneurs' businesses.
Accordingly, the National Tax Service is expanding a variety of tax support policies tailored for young people to help them focus on their business activities with peace of mind. First, young SME founders who meet job creation requirements will be exempt from selection for regular tax audits and may have tax audits deferred for up to two years.
The National Tax Service provides customized tax consulting services for each stage of the business cycle. At the startup stage, young entrepreneurs are assigned a dedicated tax accountant and certified public accountant to provide one-on-one tailored tax advisory services from the outset. Currently, the integrated information desks at 79 tax offices offer consultations and guidance to small-scale and new business owners on electronic filing, issuing electronic tax invoices, and more.
Tax support, including tax reductions for young entrepreneurs, is also being strengthened. Young startup companies can receive a 50-100% reduction in income tax and corporate tax for up to five years. Advance notifications are provided to taxpayers eligible for these tax reductions.
The National Tax Service has also eased the burden on young entrepreneurs by extending the deadlines for tax filing and payment (up to nine months), exempting the requirement to provide tax payment guarantees when applying for payment extensions (up to 100 million won for startup companies), and uniformly reducing the national tax payment agency fee rate by 0.1 percentage points.
An official from the National Tax Service stated, "Starting with this on-site communication meeting for young entrepreneurs, the National Tax Service will continue to develop tax support measures that young business owners can truly feel," adding, "In future meetings as well, we will strive to faithfully reflect the opinions from the field of young entrepreneurship in our tax administration."
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