Korea Year-end Tax Settlement Calculator for Foreigners 2026 brackets · 연말정산
Will you get a refund? Should you elect the 19% flat tax? Side-by-side answer in 30 seconds — for E-7, F-2, F-5, F-6 workers.
Optional deductions (dependents · children · meal allowance)
How the calculation works
This tool follows the 2026 framework of Korea's Income Tax Act and the Restriction of Special Taxation Act §18-2 (foreign worker flat-rate provision).
Option A — 19% flat tax (special)
- National tax = taxable salary × 19%
- Local income tax = national tax × 10% (so effective rate = 20.9%)
- NO deductions, NO exemptions, NO credits — flat means flat
- Eligibility: started work in Korea on/before 31 Dec 2026, within 20 years of first Korean work date
Option B — Progressive (general)
- Earned-income deduction: 70% / 40% / 15% / 5% / 2% by salary band, capped at ₩20M
- Personal exemption: ₩1.5M × (1 + dependents)
- Progressive tax (8 brackets, 6% to 45%)
- Child tax credit: ₩250k / ₩550k / ₩550k + ₩400k × (n−2) for children aged 8+
- Earned-income credit (max ₩740k for low earners, floored at ₩500k for high)
- Standard credit: ₩130,000
- Local income tax: 10% surtax on national tax
Items not collected: credit-card spending, medical, education, jeonse-loan principal, monthly rent (월세), pension contributions (NPS / 퇴직연금 / 연금저축), insurance premiums, donations. Real refund typically larger than estimate.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can use the 19% flat tax option?
Any foreign national working as a wage earner in Korea — regardless of visa type — who first started work here on or before 31 December 2026. You can apply it for up to 20 consecutive years from your first Korean work date. You elect it via your employer at year-end settlement or directly to the NTS. Once elected for the year, all other deductions, exemptions, and tax credits are forfeited. High earners (typically KRW 130M+) usually save the most; low-to-mid earners are almost always better off on the progressive scale.
What's the difference between yeonmaljeongsan and jonghap sodeukse?
Yeonmaljeongsan (year-end tax settlement) is the January-February reconciliation done through your employer for wage income only — your company files for you. Jonghap sodeukse (global income tax) is the May filing you do yourself at Hometax if you also have freelance income, rental, dividends over KRW 20M, or foreign-source income. If you're a salaried worker on one job with no side income, year-end settlement is your only filing — no May trip to the NTS.
What deductions am I missing if I choose the 19% flat tax?
Everything. The flat rate replaces all of: earned-income deduction, personal/dependent exemptions, child tax credit, credit-card and cash-receipt deductions, medical expenses, education costs, monthly rent (wolse) credit, jeonse-loan principal credit, pension contributions (NPS, retirement pension, pension savings), insurance premiums, donations, and the standard credit. For salaries under roughly KRW 130M, those deductions usually beat the flat rate easily.
What if I worked only part of the year?
Enter the actual gross paid for the months you worked — do not annualise. Personal and dependent exemptions are generally allowed in full if you were a Korean tax resident at year-end, but the National Tax Service may pro-rate certain credits. If you arrived mid-year and won't pass the 183-day residency test, you file as a non-resident on Korean-source income only and can't access the year-end settlement process — see our Foreigner Tax Guide tool instead.
How does global income tax differ from year-end settlement?
Year-end settlement covers wage income through your employer in January-February. The May global-income filing combines wages with other income — freelance/business, rental, dividends/interest over KRW 20M, pension, foreign-source income for residents — and you must file it yourself at hometax.go.kr or via a tax accountant between 1-31 May. Most single-employer expats only do year-end settlement; F-2/F-5 holders with side gigs almost always also need to file in May.
Last updated: 2026-05. Brackets and credits follow 2026 Korean Income Tax Act amendments. Local income tax (10% surtax on national tax) is included in displayed totals.