South Korea Eyes Fourth Delay on Crypto Tax, Possibly to 2029

If you've been following South Korea's on-again, off-again relationship with crypto taxation, grab a chair — because this saga just added another chapter. The country is reportedly weighing yet another delay to its cryptocurrency gains tax, which would mark the fourth postponement and push implementation as far out as 2029.

For context, South Korea has been trying to get a crypto tax off the ground for years. The plan would impose a levy on profits investors make from trading digital assets, but lawmakers keep kicking the can down the road. Each delay has generally been justified by concerns about market readiness, investor protection frameworks not being fully in place, or simply the political headwinds that come with taxing a highly engaged retail investor base.

Read more CalPERS Trims Big Tech Holdings Amid Growing AI Market Fears →

This kind of repeated deferral isn't just a bureaucratic footnote — it has real implications for how crypto markets operate in one of the world's most active trading nations. South Korean retail investors are notoriously enthusiastic participants in crypto markets, and any new tax regime would significantly change how they calculate their trading strategies and net returns. Delaying the tax again effectively keeps the current zero-tax environment intact for those investors for several more years.

From a policy standpoint, the repeated postponements raise questions about whether South Korea will ever find a politically comfortable moment to pull the trigger on crypto taxation, or whether the delays will continue indefinitely. Other major economies have moved forward with crypto tax frameworks, which could eventually add pressure on Seoul to follow suit — but so far, domestic political calculations seem to be winning that argument.

Continue reading at CoinDesk