A lawmaker from South Korea's ruling party has called for a delay in crypto tax, while the Ministry of Finance still insists on imposing it on schedule.

According to The Korea Times, Min Byung-deok, a senior official of the policy committee of South Korea’s ruling Democratic Party, stated at a virtual assets conference in Seoul that crypto taxation should only be levied after the passage of the Digital Asset Basic Law, rather than being implemented before the basic law is enacted. The virtual asset income tax, originally scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2027, has already been delayed three times due to incomplete tax collection infrastructure, market volatility, and an imperfect investor protection framework. Min Byung-deok pointed out that difficulties in tracking income from overseas trading platforms and the inability to carry forward investment losses to subsequent years stem from immature tax collection conditions, not opposition to taxation itself. The South Korean government still insists on implementing the tax as scheduled. Finance Minister Lee Hyung-dong told the National Assembly on the same day that current tax laws already stipulate virtual asset income will be taxed starting next year, noting that about 85% of investors hold less than 5 million won in assets; after deducting the basic exemption of 2.5 million won, most will either not need to pay tax or face a very small burden. Under existing rules, income from the transfer or lending of virtual assets is categorized as other income and taxed at a 20% rate, calculated on annual net gains with no loss carryforward allowed. The actual tax filing window is expected to open in May 2028. The Korea Digital Asset Exchange Alliance (DAXA) and opposition parties have also called for a delay. A survey of 2,423 investors by Tiger Research and Chainalysis showed that 73.7% oppose the taxation plan.