Property tax — you pay if you own it on June 1
This page is machine translated from Ieumi's guide written in Korean. If the meaning is confusing, please look at the Korean original text. View original text (Korean)
If you own a home, building, or land, you pay every year in July and September. Who pays is determined by a single date: June 1.
Deadline
For housing, it's paid in two halves: July 16–31 and September 16–30. However, if the annual tax amount is 200,000 won or less, it may be paid in a single installment in July, depending on the ordinance. Buildings, vessels, and aircraft are paid in July; land in September.
📌 Key points
The tax base date is June 1 every year. Whoever owns the property on that date pays that year's property tax — even if it's sold on June 2, the seller pays that year's tax. That's why buyers and sellers settle accounts around this date.
📞 Contact
The tax division of the city/county/district office with jurisdiction over the home/land. Local tax consultation: 110; online: Wetax (wetax.go.kr).
⚠️ Things to watch out for
Those who rent (jeonse or monthly rent) do not pay property tax; the landlord does. There is also a system that reduces the tax rate for households with only one home, but the Enforcement Decree defines that "one household" only as "family members jointly listed on the resident registration record under Article 7 of the Resident Registration Act." Since foreigners have alien registration rather than resident registration, it may be difficult to receive this special treatment. However, the determination is made by the city/county/district office, so if you own only one home, ask the tax division of your city/county/district office or call 110 to check "whether the single-household, single-home special treatment applies" before you receive your bill.
❗ What happens if you don't
Not paying incurs a surcharge. Local tax arrears affect stay-related civil applications and naturalization screening.
See also
Basis
- 지방세법 제114조·제115조제1항 · 같은 법 시행령 제110조의2제1항 — 법제처 API 원문 대조 2026-09-10 (법 MST 282559 · 시행령 MST 287223, 시행 2026-07-01)
This content was checked on 2026-09-10.