Tax Probe Begins on High-Income Earners with Four or More Houses

A tax probe has been launched on 212 high-income earners such as doctors and attorneys who own four or more houses.

A larger scale tax probe will begin in September after a verification process on 20,130 people who have three or more houses in areas where housing prices have skyrocketed.

The National Tax Service (NTS) announced its plans for the tax probe on Wednesday and immediately got to work.

The 212 targets of the tax probe own houses mainly in areas where house prices have soared and are suspected to have evaded taxes.

The targets are 30 specialists such as doctors and attorneys, 43 business owners, 70 self-employed individuals, and 69 company employees. Together they own more than 1,500 houses, and one of them own as many as 43 houses.

Areas where housing prices have risen by more than five percent as of June 13 compared to late last year are categorized as places with skyrocketing house prices. Fifteen areas fall into the category: Yongsan, Gangnam, Gangdong, Seocho, Songpa in Seoul, Yeongtong-gu of Suwon, Bundang-gu of Seongnam, Dongan-gu of Anyang, Gwacheon, Yong-in, and Gunpo of Gyeonggido, Soosung-gu and Dalseo-gu of Daegu, Cheonan of Chungnam, and Changwon of Gyeongnam.

NTS tax probe chief Han Sang-ryul said of the background of the investigation, “Speculation by multi-home owners is behind the recent surge in apartment prices.”

Eun-Woo Lee libra@donga.com