Korea withholds 22% on dividends, most interest and royalties paid to a foreign company, unless the foreign recipient claims a lower treaty rate before payment. This guide sets out the treaty rates for 13 major investor countries, explains when local income tax is added on top, and walks through the application and refund procedure.
Invest KOREA puts the official process for a foreign-invested subsidiary at about two weeks, but that clock starts only once head-office documents are legalized and ready. This guide walks through each step, who handles it, what it needs, and the tax filings that start the moment the company exists.
A foreign company can enter Korea through a local subsidiary, a branch or a liaison office, and the choice decides what you may do in Korea, how far head office is exposed, and how profits are taxed and sent home. This guide compares the three side by side and shows when each one fits.
Korea raised every corporate income tax bracket by one percentage point for fiscal years beginning on or after 1 January 2026, so national rates now run from 10% to 25%, with local income tax on top. This guide covers the brackets, the annual filing calendar for a December year-end company, loss carryforward limits and the points a new foreign-owned subsidiary most often misses in its first year.
Korea charges VAT at 10%, and a Korean subsidiary must register, issue electronic tax invoices and file on a quarterly rhythm. This guide explains when services between a foreign parent and its Korean subsidiary are zero-rated, when the Korean side must self-assess VAT, and how foreign digital service providers register.
Foreign employees in Korea can elect a 19% flat income tax on their salary for up to 20 years instead of the 6–45% progressive rates. This guide explains who is excluded, what deductions you give up, where the break-even point lies, which forms to file, and a pending 2027 proposal to raise the rate.
Korea applies the Income Inclusion Rule from 2024, the Undertaxed Profits Rule from 2025 and its own domestic top-up tax from 2026. This guide explains which groups are in scope, what a Korean subsidiary of a foreign group must file and by when, how the transitional CbCR safe harbour works, and what is left in Korea when the parent's country already applies the IIR.
Changing the accounting and tax adviser of a Korean subsidiary does not have to leave a gap in filings. This guide covers the cut-off dates that work best, how the new adviser gets Hometax access, the records to take over, and what to check in the first weeks.
Anse Accounting Corp.