Songpa-gu "Returning 1.724 Billion Won in Unclaimed Taxes"

5546 Unclaimed Refunds, 83% Under 50,000 KRW
Refunds Can Be Checked on ETAX and Government24

Songpa-gu, Seoul (District Mayor Seo Gang-seok) has designated the entire month of May as the "Local Tax Unclaimed Refunds Intensive Clearance Period" and is taking steps to return 1.724 billion KRW in unclaimed taxes to taxpayers.

The target for unclaimed refunds in the first half of 2024 in Songpa-gu totals 5,546 cases, of which 83% are small refunds under 50,000 KRW. These mainly arise from situations such as ownership transfer or cancellation (e.g., scrapping) of vehicles after prepayment of automobile tax, national tax corrections of income tax, taxpayer reporting errors, and double payments.

Since these amounts cannot be reclaimed after five years from the payment decision date, the district operates the Local Tax Unclaimed Refunds Intensive Clearance Period every first and second half of the year. In the second half of last year, Songpa-gu successfully cleared 330 million KRW, which is 81% of the total unclaimed refunds amounting to 408 million KRW.

This first half of the year, the district is also making efforts to minimize unclaimed refunds. Refund recipients are notified of the amounts via text messages, and after updating resident registration data such as addresses and names, refund notices are sent by mail.

For small amounts under 10,000 KRW, which account for half of the total cases (2,773 cases), a donation application form is enclosed to encourage easy participation in sharing. For corporate taxpayers, location updates, on-site inspections, and notification letters are also conducted.

Moreover, the district is vigorously promoting the intensive clearance period through its website, social networking services (SNS), newsletters, and other channels, making multifaceted efforts to protect taxpayers' rights.

Unclaimed refunds can be checked directly through various channels. They can be viewed and applied for online via ETAX (Seoul City), WETAX, Government24, and the Seoul City tax payment app (STAX). By pre-registering a bank account number in preparation for refund occurrences, automatic returns can be made later without separate applications, providing convenience.

Inquiries can be made by phone through ARS or the district tax administration department, and applications can also be submitted via text message. However, if local taxes or non-tax revenues are overdue, the outstanding amounts will be deducted first, and the remaining balance will be refunded.

District Mayor Seo Gang-seok stated, "We will focus on promoting this intensive clearance period to ensure that residents' rights to claim refunds do not expire unnecessarily," adding, "We will take the lead in protecting the valuable property rights of residents and realize a trusted tax administration."

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