South Korea tax agency struggles to finalize crypto tax rules ahead of January launch

South Korea’s National Tax Service is facing difficulties in drafting detailed guidance for virtual asset taxation ahead of its planned January implementation, Edaily reported. The agency held the first meeting of its advisory panel on Aug. 24 and discussed the specific meaning of virtual asset transfers and lending, along with taxation standards for staking, lending, airdrops and hard forks. Advisors, however, said the scope that can be delegated to an administrative notice is limited under current law. They explained that while calculation standards such as how to determine acquisition costs can be clarified through a notice, defining the scope of transfers or lending where the law provides no clear definition, or designating specific transactions as taxable, could effectively create new taxable items and risk violating the principle that taxation must be based on law.