Dongdaemun-gu Challenges 100% Local Tax Refund Rate

Promotion of Comprehensive Local Tax Refund Settlement by This Year... Protecting Taxpayer Rights and Enhancing Tax Administration Trust... Refund Application Guidance via Phone and Text, Continuous Donation of Small Refunds Under 10,000 Won

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Dongdaemun-gu (Mayor Yoo Deok-yeol) has actively started promoting the refund of local taxes amounting to over 73 million won that taxpayers have not claimed.

The main reasons for local tax refunds are cases where taxpayers have paid by mistake, when taxpayers prepay automobile tax and then transfer vehicle ownership or scrap the vehicle, or when local income tax refunds occur due to national tax corrections.

By amount, refunds under 50,000 won account for 83.3%, and among these, small refunds under 10,000 won total about 1.9 million won, with many taxpayers not applying even after receiving refund notifications.

Accordingly, the district is encouraging refunds by promoting a "Local Tax Unclaimed Refunds Comprehensive Cleanup" for four months until December 31 to protect taxpayers' rights and improve tax administration trust.

Local tax refunds expire if not claimed within five years from the date the refund is decided.

Therefore, the district sends mobile notifications and refund notices in bulk to eligible recipients and operates a "Local Tax Refund Unclaimed Refund Encouragement Team" to guide refund recipients through various methods such as phone calls and text messages.

Local tax refunds can be checked and applied for via ETAX or STAX, or by applying at the district office’s tax department.

Yoo Deok-yeol, Mayor of Dongdaemun-gu, said, "Many refunds are small amounts, so taxpayers often do not know about them, but we have actively promoted the comprehensive cleanup of local tax refunds to protect taxpayers' rights. Through this cleanup, we aim to achieve transparent and trustworthy tax administration and will continue to pursue various measures to enhance residents' convenience in tax payment."

Since November 2016, the district has been guiding taxpayers eligible for local tax refunds to donate their refund amounts at any time upon application.

To facilitate smooth donation of refund amounts, the district has prepared a donation application form on the back of the local tax refund payment notice, helping residents donate conveniently in their daily lives. So far, about 5.8 million won in local tax refunds have been donated to the "Dongdaemun-gu Social Welfare Council" and "Community Chest of Korea (Sarangui Yeolmae)".

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.