[Full Text] Kim Hyunjun, Commissioner of the National Tax Service, "Strict Response to Intelligent Tax Evasion and Delinquency"

Kim Hyun-joon, Commissioner of the National Tax Service, is delivering a greeting at the 2020 National Tax Office Chiefs Meeting held at the National Tax Service in Government Sejong 2 Complex on the 29th.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] On the 29th, the National Tax Service (NTS) held the 2020 first half-year nationwide tax office chiefs meeting at the Government Sejong Complex, chaired by Kim Hyun-joon, Commissioner of the NTS. The nationwide tax office chiefs meeting is held twice a year by the NTS. On this day, 313 tax office chiefs from across the country attended and finalized and announced the operational plan for national tax administration in the first half of the year.

The following is the full text of the greeting from Kim Hyun-joon, Commissioner of the NTS.

Dear tax office chiefs nationwide!

Nice to meet you.

Today, we have gathered here to discuss this year’s operational direction for national tax administration aimed at a new leap and definite change in tax administration.

Thanks to the concerted efforts of tax office chiefs nationwide last year, we were able to stably secure the revenue budget allocated to the NTS and smoothly support the national fiscal demand.

We successfully paid the greatly expanded Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit without any issues and responded strictly to unfair tax evasion.

Through the operation of the 'National Tax Administration Innovation Task Force' and the 'Public Advisory Group,' we prepared innovation tasks and an implementation roadmap for all areas of national tax administration.

I sincerely thank all of you who have done your best in your respective positions.

Although the economy is expected to improve this year, uncertainties such as the direction of the US-China trade negotiations still remain.

In this situation, the NTS must not neglect its fundamental duties as a tax service agency and a fair taxation institution. Furthermore, we must not be complacent but continuously innovate.

This year, we must faithfully implement the innovation tasks discovered last year to achieve substantial changes and results in national tax administration that the public can clearly feel.

I believe this is the best way to raise the level of national tax administration one step higher and to become the 'NTS for the people and taxpayers.'

I expect the chiefs present here to actively participate, and I would like to give a few requests for concrete actions.

First, we must further expand the role of the NTS as a service agency that helps the people. Based on advanced IT technologies such as big data and mobile, we must provide more convenient tax services to fully support voluntary and sincere tax payment.

Please actively implement the 'Tax Support Measures for Self-Employed and Small Business Owners,' which has been extended until the end of this year, so that it can be felt on the ground to help the livelihood economy recover quickly.

While reducing the total number of investigations, we must continue to expand simplified investigations.

We must operate the newly introduced 'Small and Medium Enterprise Tax Consulting' and 'Pre-Review of Research and Human Resource Development Tax Credits' systems solidly to support the innovative growth of companies.

Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit for working low-income households must also be paid conveniently and promptly.

Second, we must respond strictly to intelligent tax evasion and delinquency that go against the realization of a fair society.

We must pursue and tax unearned income through real estate, which causes frustration to the majority of the public, to the end.

In particular, we must take strict measures against disguised gifts when acquiring high-priced houses, income concealment by multi-homeowners and real estate rental businesses.

We will thoroughly verify the irregular inheritance of wealth by large corporations and wealthy individuals, and intensively investigate the connection between tax evasion and preferential treatment of high-income professionals and high-cost private education.

For malicious high-amount delinquents, we must strengthen on-site collection activities centered on the newly established tax office delinquency collection divisions this year.

To enhance the effectiveness of tax base management, we must meticulously supplement the existing reporting verification system and continuously expand the taxation infrastructure.

Third, we must firmly establish proactive administration, a new public service paradigm, to realize the changes desired by the public.

We must actively and proactively resolve taxpayers’ tax difficulties beyond past perceptions and practices.

Please proactively discover and support vulnerable taxpayers by newly establishing the 'Tax Support Promotion Team.'

We must carry out 'field-centered' national tax administration that listens attentively to the voices of the people and communicates sincerely.

We must also boldly innovate internal working methods through frontline field diagnosis.

No matter what changes and innovations occur, without integrity as a premise, we cannot gain the trust of the public.

Managers must lead by example and maintain a restrained public official attitude.

We must create a working environment that balances work and family so that employees can work energetically, and also strive harder to secure manpower and budget for smooth work performance on the ground.

Dear tax office chiefs and managers nationwide!

The mission and responsibility given to our NTS now are immense.

We must faithfully fulfill the NTS’s original duties, accelerate changes for the people, and make this a turning point for national tax administration to take a new leap.

Starting with myself as the Commissioner, let us gather the strength and wisdom of over 20,000 national tax officials to surely realize the 'NTS for the people and taxpayers' and 'national tax administration that the public sympathizes with and trusts.'

Thank you.

January 29, 2020

Commissioner of the National Tax Service Kim Hyun-joon

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