The National Tax Service said on the 8th it will launch nationwide delinquent collection task forces for national taxes and non-tax revenues. The task forces aim over six months through the end of this year to check the living conditions of 1.34 million national tax delinquents and 4.24 million non-tax revenue delinquents and collect taxes.
The National Tax Service said it held launch ceremonies for the task forces at 133 tax offices nationwide that day. The task forces were created on the orders of President Lee Jae-myung. In a Cabinet meeting in Jan., the president said not only national tax delinquencies but also non-tax revenue delinquencies such as fines and penalty surcharge are serious problems, and told the National Tax Service to manage them in an integrated way.
Non-tax revenue rose from 193.2 trillion won in 2020 to 257.8 trillion won in 2024. It accounts for 43% of the government's total revenue. During this period, uncollected amounts also increased from 19.1 trillion won to 25.1 trillion won. However, the authority to collect and manage non-tax revenues is dispersed among ministries and local governments. As a result, there have been concerns that delinquency management is not being carried out properly.
The task forces will operate at tax offices nationwide for six months from today through Dec. 23. They plan to notify delinquents by phone of their arrears and visit their addresses or business sites in person to check living environments and other details.
National Tax Service Commissioner Lim Kwang-hyun said, "The task forces have a fivefold effect of achieving tax justice, securing finances, creating jobs, clearing delinquencies, and linking to welfare," and added, "The National Tax Service will do everything it can to back the on-site work so that the task force field inspectors can feel proud."