Korean crypto tax delay petition triggers review

TLDR

A South Korean petition to delay the planned crypto tax has passed 50,000 signatures, automatically triggering a parliamentary review of the policy.

1. The petition asks for a two-year delay to the crypto gains tax and crossed the 50,000-signature threshold that forces a National Assembly committee review.
2. The tax is still scheduled for 1 Jan 2027, with a 22% rate on annual digital asset gains above about 2.5 million won, and nothing has changed legally yet.
3. The key watchpoints are the committees response, new tax guidance planned for 2026, and whether lawmakers agree to a fourth delay despite regulators publicly defending the current schedule.

Confidence: high because multiple reports and official tax guidance align on the schedule, rates, and petition mechanics.

Deep Dive

1. Petition And Review Trigger

South Korean investors filed a public petition asking for a two-year delay to the crypto gains tax that is currently set to start on 1 Jan 2027.

Under the National Assemblys electronic petition system, any proposal that gathers 50,000 verified signatures within 30 days must be sent to the relevant standing committee for review. That threshold has now been met, so the petition has triggered formal legislative consideration of a delay, as reported by sources such as crypto.news and The Block and summarized in a recent CoinsKid community article on the crypto tax petition.

Petitioners argue the tax infrastructure is not ready, many investors are sitting on losses, Korean exchanges have seen profits drop by up to 90%, and an early tax could push activity to offshore platforms.

2. What The Current Tax Plan Does

The law on the books already postpones crypto income taxation to 1 Jan 2027, after previous delays from 2022 to 2023, then 2025, then 2027.

From that date, annual gains from crypto transfers, lending and crypto to crypto trades above 2.5 million won are classified as "other income" and taxed at a combined 22% rate, made up of a 20% national tax plus a 2% local tax. The regime applies to assets on domestic and foreign platforms and private wallets, with first returns due in May 2028 for 2027 income.

Officials, including finance minister nominee Lee Hyoung il, have said the plan remains on schedule and that the National Tax Service will publish detailed standards for reporting, cost calculation and wallet tracing later in 2026.

3. How This Could Affect Crypto Markets

The petition is significant politically but does not itself change the law, and a prior petition to abolish the tax also reached 50,000 signatures earlier this year without altering the schedule.

If lawmakers do grant another two year delay, it would extend the current no tax window and could support ongoing speculative activity on Korean exchanges, which have historically influenced altcoin flows and premiums. If they hold the 2027 date, clearer rules plus tracing tools and OECD style data sharing may push more trading into fully reported, onshore venues and reduce some of the more opaque flows.

For global markets, the immediate price impact is likely modest, but Korea is a sizable spot market, so the final outcome could affect medium term liquidity and retail-driven volatility in certain altcoins.

Conclusion

South Koreas petition system has elevated a well organized push to slow the countrys crypto tax rollout, but the 22% tax on gains above 2.5 million won is still legally set to begin in 2027. The next meaningful signal will be whether the National Assembly committee recommends a further delay or whether regulators remain aligned behind the current timeline as they finalize detailed guidance.