Last year, income tax on earned income paid by office workers hit a record high. The share of earned income tax in total national taxes also expanded to the 18% range.
According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance on the 18th, last year's earned income tax revenue totaled 68.4 trillion won. That is up 7.4 trillion won (12.1%) from the previous year's 61 trillion won.
Earned income tax revenue rose from the 30 trillion won range in 2016 to the 40 trillion won range in 2020, then reached 57.4 trillion won in 2022 and 59.1 trillion won in 2023. It surpassed 60 trillion won for the first time in 2024, and last year it once again set a record high.
The Ministry of Economy and Finance cited the increase in the number of employed people and rising wages as reasons for the growth in earned income tax. The number of regular wage workers increased by 283,000 (1.7%), from 16,353,000 in 2024 to 16,636,000 last year. Average wages per regular worker also rose by 310,000 won (7.4%), from 4,168,000 won in Oct. 2024 to 4,478,000 won in Oct. last year.
Earned income tax revenue also grew faster than other tax items. Over the past 10 years (2015–2025), total national tax revenue increased 71.6%, while earned income tax revenue grew 152.4%.
Its share of total national taxes has also steadily grown. Last year, earned income tax accounted for 18.3% of total national tax revenue (373.9 trillion won). Compared with 2015 (12.4%), that is an increase of 5.9 percentage points over 10 years. With improved corporate results boosting bonuses at major semiconductor corporations, forecasts say earned income tax revenue will increase further this year.
Meanwhile, some say the tax system should be adjusted in line with nominal wage gains. In its report published in Apr. last year, "Recent drivers of earned income tax growth and implications," the National Assembly Budget Office noted, "There is a tendency for tax revenue to gradually expand as nominal income increases," and said, "It is necessary to improve the fairness and acceptability of the tax burden."