"Tax surcharge suspension on multiple-home owners allowed for applications filed by May 9"

President Lee Jae-myung instructed his aides to review a plan that would allow the temporary suspension of the capital gains tax surcharge on multiple-home owners to apply to cases where an application under the land transaction permission system is filed by May 9, the date when the suspension is set to expire.
He also ordered officials to look for ways to fix a situation in which single-home owners cannot sell their homes if they have tenants, calling it an unfair disadvantage. He judged that easing this restriction would have a greater effect on increasing housing supply. In addition, President Lee received a report from the National Tax Service (NTS) on abuses of the family business inheritance tax deduction program and said, "I am at a loss for words; this is outrageous," instructing officials to "narrow the scope of eligibility significantly."
At the joint session of the State Council of South Korea and the Emergency Economic Review Meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae on the 6th, President Lee said, "Up to now, people have been told that they must complete the land transaction permission process and sign a contract by May 9. So by mid-April, many seem to conclude that selling is no longer possible because of the time it takes to obtain approval."
Regarding this, President Lee asked, "Is it really necessary to do it that way?" and continued, "We can keep May 9 as the deadline, but how about allowing cases where an application for permission is filed by May 9?" He added, "If necessary, please either clarify the interpretation or consider revising the relevant regulations."
He further instructed officials to consider solutions for single-home owners who, unlike multiple-home owners, are unable to sell their homes if they have tenants living there.
President Lee also strongly criticized the way the family business inheritance tax deduction program is being abused. "What kind of family business is a parking lot?" he demanded, adding, "A national system must have at least a minimum level of rationality. Watching this, I am so stunned that I am speechless." He went on, "If you own 50 billion won worth of real estate, you can just build a parking lot, run it for a while, and after 10 years pass, you can pass it on without paying taxes," and condemned the situation by saying, "People who actually pay taxes are the fools."


cjk@fnnews.com Choi Jong-geun and Sung Seok-woo Reporter