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Lee slams 'slow' parliament as enhanced tax collection bill joins stack of stalled legislation

Published: 27 Jan. 2026, 18:17

SARAH KIM
[email protected]

President Lee Jae Myung, right, speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the Blue House in central Seoul on Jan. 27. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

President Lee Jae Myung expressed regret Tuesday over the National Assembly's lethargic handling of government policy legislation to improve the collection of taxes, calling it an impediment to "getting work done."

"The National Assembly is currently so slow that it can't get its work done," Lee said in a Cabinet meeting televised live from the Blue House in Seoul, noting that eight months have passed since his administration took office, but "only 20 percent of the government's basic policy measures have been legislated."

The remark came up as National Tax Service (NTS) Commissioner Lim Kwang-hyun briefed the president on measures to collect unpaid national taxes and other revenue and mentioned the need for legal revision to this end.

Lee said that the "National Assembly's legislative process is too slow" and recommended that ministers "recruit and dispatch personnel under each ministry" or establish a joint management task force instead of just waiting around.

Lim responded that revising the State Credit Management Act would be faster, and Lee again vented his frustration that there is no guarantee when the legislation will be passed.

"There's no guarantee it'll be done by February," Lee said. "There are hundreds of bills pending in the National Assembly, and at this rate, we don't know when they'll be done."

Regarding the collection of overdue taxes, Lee noted that those "who are delinquent continue to be delinquent," adding, "We must not allow these people to benefit. We must conduct a thorough investigation and convince them that they cannot live off of tax evasion."

"Given the situation, let's not delay and take some emergency measures," Lee said. "Administration is all about speed, and we can't afford to wait."

The Cabinet meeting came as the government discussed measures to curb the overheating housing market, including an end to tax exemptions for owners of multiple homes, a policy set to expire on May 9.

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the Blue House in central Seoul on Jan. 27. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

"To truly achieve growth for all through a major economic transformation, we must rectify the distorted allocation of resources in our society, which is abnormally concentrated in real estate," Lee said, one more confirming his intention to end the temporary exemption introduced under the previous conservative administration in 2022 waiving the additional capital gains tax normally imposed on owners of multiple homes when they sell properties.

Capital gains taxes on real estate sales range from 6 to 45 percent. Owners of two homes in areas designated speculative zones, such as Seoul, face an additional 20 percentage points, while owners of three or more homes could face a 30 percentage point surcharge. If capital gains exceed 1 billion won, owners of multiple homes could face tax rates of up to 82.5 percent.

"The excessive expansion of unproductive real estate will inevitably fuel a bubble, undermining growth potential and potentially dealing a significant blow to the national economy as a whole," Lee said. "Furthermore, it will undermine trust among members of society, potentially destabilizing our communities."

Blue House spokesperson Kim Nam-joon said in a press briefing after the Cabinet meeting that the plan to end the exemption period on the capital gains tax "should proceed as scheduled, in terms of promoting policy trust, but we plan to discuss it again with the Cabinet to thoroughly check whether any additional unreasonable risks are discovered in the process."

BY SARAH KIM [[email protected]]