184 Cases of Tax Investigations Suspended for Illegality or Unfairness Over 5 Years... "Abuse of Taxation and Investigation Authority Pointed Out"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] Concerns have been raised that the National Tax Service (NTS) is increasingly abusing its authority to conduct tax investigations.

According to data submitted by the NTS to Kim Taeheum, a member of the People Power Party on the National Assembly's Planning and Finance Committee, there have been 184 tax investigations halted since 2015 due to confirmed illegal or unjust practices.

By year, the number decreased from 27 cases in 2015 to 18 cases in 2016, but then increased to 29 cases in 2017, 43 cases in 2018, and 67 cases last year.

When taxpayers request the Taxpayer Protection Committee to stop illegal or unjust tax investigations, the committee can decide to halt the investigation after deliberation. Recently, the number of such halted cases has significantly increased.

The NTS conducts tax criminal investigations when there is suspicion of tax evasion through fraud or dishonest methods, but there have been cases where high-intensity investigations ended with no charges.

Among the 313 individuals subjected to tax criminal investigations last year, 75 people, or 24%, were cleared of charges. The number of no-charge cases was 26 in 2015, 31 in 2016, 38 in 2017, and 24 in 2018, totaling 194 cases from 2015 through this year.

Rep. Kim said, "The NTS is still criticized as a powerful institution due to frequent abuse of its taxation and investigation authority. It must shed its past sense of authority and transform into an agency that collects taxes from the people."

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