"National Tax Service officials are harsh. They lack flexibility." This is one of the prejudices people have about National Tax Service officials. Especially for those responsible for tax audits, they say, "It seems like not a drop of blood would come out even if you poked them with a needle."
What about the staff of the 'Investigation Division 4' conducting special (irregular) tax audits on corporations? The Investigation Division 4 is renowned as a terror among businesspeople, earning the nickname "Grim Reaper." Their role and mission are to wield the sword unsparingly against illegal tax evasion by corporations. However, they don't coldly treat everyone. They also transmit positive energy through good deeds where tax assistance is needed.
Cho Yeong-tak, Director of the 2nd Department of the Investigation Division 4 of the Seoul Regional Tax Service, is one of these tax officials. Businesspeople might avoid him due to thorough tax audits, but small sewing business owners remember him as 'a grateful person.'
Director Cho, who has been working as a National Tax Service official for 30 years, has been volunteering for tax consultation services for sewing micro-enterprises for half of his public service career, 15 years. It all started in 2009 when he encouraged sewing businesses that weren't registered as enterprises to register, as they were missing out on tax welfare benefits.
Sewing micro-enterprises were initially scared that registering as enterprises would mean paying a lot of taxes, but under his persuasion, they gradually registered. Director Cho also helped them with their tax duties after registration. He regularly gave tax lectures and provided one-on-one consultations for those in need. Registered sewing micro-enterprises were able to receive government support for small businesses.
The Seoul Sewing Industry Association recognized the merits of Director Cho and presented him with a plaque of appreciation. The plaque carried the phrase, "The seed you sowed with your concern and service has grown into a lush tree over time." Last year, Seoul Sewing Industry Association Chief Cha Gyeong-nam even recommended Director Cho for the 'Korea Public Officials Award.' In his letter of recommendation, Chief Cha wrote, "Through free consultation services, over 300 member companies have registered as enterprises," and "sewing micro-enterprises long overlooked now have a new foundation and opportunities. Free tax consulting is still being provided for young designers starting businesses."
I met Director Cho at the Annex of the Seoul Regional Tax Service to ask about his volunteer work.
―I heard you've been helping with the tax duties of sewing micro-enterprises for a long time.
"It's nothing special. I've been helping with the tax duties of sewing micro-enterprises and giving lectures related to taxes."
―When did you start?
"Was it around January 2009? At the time, I was volunteering at a children's study room in Changsin-dong when a lady found out I was a National Tax Service employee and asked about taxes. I explained it to her, which eventually led me to meet Cha Gyeong-nam, who was in the sewing business. Through Chief Cha, I learned about the poor conditions in the sewing industry."
―What was the issue?
"Most of them weren't registered as enterprises. When advised to register, they seemed to think it meant paying a huge amount of taxes. Many tax exemptions apply to small micro-businesses, yet they were unaware of them. So I started telling them that registering was essential and began teaching them about taxes."
―It must have been difficult to persuade them.
"I explained that just as you register a birth when a person is born, an enterprise should register as well. If you earn a lot, you'll pay taxes, but small enterprises can receive benefits like this and that. Initially skeptical, when I continued to approach them and provided tax assistance as if offering after-sales service, they started to trust. Over 300 sewing businesses registered as enterprises."
―Why is enterprise registration important from the perspective of a tax official?
"Just as Bank of Korea staff consider 'counterfeit money,' National Tax Service staff regard 'unrecorded transactions.' In sewing, or apparel, transactions occur in the form of 'sewing enterprise-retail and wholesale enterprise-consumer.'
The activation of credit cards leaves transaction records between retail and wholesale enterprises and consumers. Retail and wholesale enterprises engage in tax evasion by hiding sales or overstating purchasing expenditures. The easiest way to fake purchase expenditures is to claim unrecorded purchases from unregistered enterprises. However, when sewing business owners register as enterprises, they cannot record these fake purchases in their books. This results in the normalization of irregularities."
―What benefits can one receive after registering as an enterprise?
"After enterprise registration, one becomes eligible for business environment improvement support, such as clean workplace support, and policy fund support. Previously, because birth registration wasn't done, such benefits couldn't be enjoyed."
―Did sewing business owners trust you from the start?
"Initially, they were skeptical. However, many sewing business owners registered with the thought that, being tax officials, we must know better than they do. While handing out business cards during lectures, I would occasionally get contacts. They would ask, 'Is this or that okay to do?' However, when I asked them, 'Where are you from?' they would hesitate to answer, probably afraid of a potential tax audit."
―What did you usually talk about during the lectures?
"I emphasize three things. Never accept unrecorded purchases. Don't engage in card splitting. And don't commit tax evasion. These are unwritten rules. The lectures mainly focus on education related to starting a business and tax settlement. I also tell them not to overly fear the National Tax Service during lectures. I explain that the National Tax Service primarily looks at large companies and not so much at small enterprises."
―Given your long-term volunteer work, your perspective on the sewing industry must be unique.
"Currently, semiconductors and automobiles sustain our country, but in the past, during the 1960s and 70s, the sewing and textile industry lifted Korea. Now, many are small business owners, but I believe the contributions of these individuals should not be forgotten by the public."
―You must often feel the harsh gaze of outsiders on National Tax Service officials.
"National Tax Service officials are responsible for the country's tax revenue, which is essential for the country to function. Although circumstances are challenging lately, everyone is working hard in their respective positions. I hope people don't find National Tax Service staff too intimidating, and I wish they would offer more encouragement."
―When did you feel the most fulfilled while doing volunteer work?
"A mother from a single-parent family once asked me how her child could become a National Tax Service official. When I inquired, 'Why?' she replied, 'I want to raise my child to be like you, a National Tax Service official.' I was so moved. I felt truly proud when business owners told me they now saw public officials in a different light. If I had sought fees for the lectures or volunteered just to be promoted, I don't think I would have been able to experience such fulfillment. Helping others and witnessing the improvement of the business owners I assisted made me even happier."