Tax collections through October rise 21 percent on year

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Tax collections through October rise 21 percent on year

Pile of 50,000 won cash at Hana Bank in Seoul. Thanks to improvement in jobs and economic recovery as well as higher property value, the government continued to enjoy increase in their taxes. However, tax take in October alone fell due to the government suspending taxes on small busiensses impacted by Covid-19 until January. [YONHAP]

Pile of 50,000 won cash at Hana Bank in Seoul. Thanks to improvement in jobs and economic recovery as well as higher property value, the government continued to enjoy increase in their taxes. However, tax take in October alone fell due to the government suspending taxes on small busiensses impacted by Covid-19 until January. [YONHAP]

Tax collections were strong in the first 10 months of the year despite a weak October.
 
According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance on Thursday, in the year through the end of October, collections totaled 307.4 trillion won ($261.5 billion), up 21 percent on year.
 
During that 10-month period, 96.3 trillion won in income taxes were collected, up 27.5 percent year on year, 67.3 trillion won in corporate taxes, up 27 percent on year, and 71.9 trillion won in value-added taxes, up 8.8 percent.    
 
Including non-tax revenue, such as the national pension, total government revenue in the first 10 months was 489.9 trillion won, up 19.6 percent.  
 
In October, the tax take fell as the government suspended taxes on small and mid-size businesses hit by Covid-19. Collections of value-added and corporate taxes for these companies were suspended to January 2022.  
 
In that month, 32.9 trillion won was collected, down 16 percent on year. Income tax came in at 9.4 trillion won, down 9.5 percent, corporate tax 2.1 trillion won, down 25 percent, and the value-added tax 15.3 trillion won, down 16 percent.
 
Spending continued to increase. In the first 10 months, spending totaled 509.2 trillion won, up 8.7 percent.
 
The fiscal deficit was 19.3 trillion won, compared with 59 trillion a year earlier, and the national debt 939.6 trillion won.  
 
"We expect this year the national debt to shrink 6.2 trillion won," said Ahn Do-geol, vice finance minister.  
 
While relaxed social distancing since November and the comprehensive real estate holding taxes paid in December are factors that will help increase collections, the recent surge of people infected with Covid-19 and the rise of the Omicron variant, which are forcing the government to up social distancing, are negative factors.  
 
 

BY LEE HO-JEONG [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]
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