South Korean tax agency collects back taxes from YouTuber content creators

The National Tax Service (NTS) said the tax arrears figure includes taxes on YouTube-related income as well as other business income.

On July 14, South Korean tax authorities released audit data for 67 YouTube content creators (YouTubers) from 2019 to 2024, and issued a total tax of 23.6 billion won (US$17.12 million) - an average of 350 million won per person.

According to a VNA reporter in Seoul, the National Tax Service of Korea (NTS) said the above figure includes taxes on income related to YouTube and other business income.

The agency said it is verifying the accuracy of YouTubers' income reports.

The tax amount also increased from 5.6 billion won in 2019-2022 to 9.1 billion won in 2023 and 8.9 billion won last year. The average tax amount per person last year exceeded 420 million won.

The latest audit results only reflect those conducted by regional tax authorities. Including audits by local tax authorities would likely increase the total.

Under South Korean law, YouTubers and other platform content creators must register as business operators and file comprehensive income tax returns if they produce video content on a regular basis and generate income.

Even donations — including those received via “super chat” — are taxable.

All financial transfers made through bank accounts that are shown during the broadcast under labels such as "donation" or "voluntary subscription fee" fall into this category.

However, Congress has repeatedly raised concerns that some YouTubers are making huge profits through misinformation and provocative content without properly reporting their earnings./.

(TTXVN/Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/co-quan-thue-han-quoc-truy-thu-thue-tu-nguoi-sang-tao-noi-dung-youtuber-post1049659.vnp