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Korea 3.3% Withholding Calculator

Your client keeps a slice back before paying you. See how much, and whether you get it back.

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The line is 183 days, not your passport

Tax residentNon-resident
Who countsYou keep a home in Korea, or you have been here 183 days or more in the tax yearEveryone else, including people working for Korean clients from abroad
What Korea taxesYour worldwide incomeOnly the income that has its source in Korea
Rate on a freelance fee3.3%, exactly what a Korean national paysA different, higher rate. A tax treaty can cut it or remove it
What happens in MayYou file an annual return, and a refund is possibleUsually settled by the withholding itself, so there is nothing to file

Your nationality and your visa type are not part of this test. What counts is where you live and how long you have been here.

Residency also weighs your job, your family and where your assets sit. If your case is borderline, ask the National Tax Service before you file.

3.3% and 8.8% are not the same thing

3.3% withholding8.8% withholding
What it coversBusiness income: freelance work you do on an ongoing basisOther income: a one-off lecture fee, an article, a prize
How it is built3% income tax plus 0.3% local income tax20% income tax plus 2% local income tax, charged on part of the fee
What it is charged onThe whole payment40% of the payment. The other 60% is written off as deemed expenses
In MayGoes into your annual returnSmall amounts of net other income can be taxed separately instead

The 8.8% looks heavier, but it lands on a smaller base. Which one applies is decided by the nature of the work, not by you.

Why only 96.7% reached your account

  1. 1
    You agree a feeNothing has been deducted at this point.
  2. 2
    The payer withholds 3.3%fee − (fee × 3.3%)They send that tax to the National Tax Service under your name, not theirs.
  3. 3
    You file between May 1 and May 31Your real expenses and personal deductions go in here for the first time.
  4. 4
    The gap is settledWithheld more than you owe and you get a refund. Withheld less and you pay the difference.
The 3.3% is a payment on account, not your final tax. A refund is common, but it is not automatic and it is not guaranteed.

Not a resident? Your number is different

What you need to knowWhere the answer comes from
What rate should have been withheld?The Income Tax Act rules for Korean-source personal service income, which sit above 3.3%
Can a treaty lower it?Korea has treaties with around 90 countries, and each one splits income types its own way
How is treaty relief claimed?You hand the payer an application before they pay you. Nobody applies it for you
Who confirms my case?The National Tax Service runs an English helpline for foreign taxpayers

We do not print a single non-resident rate here. It moves with the income type and the treaty, and a wrong number costs more than no number.

FAQ ❓

No. The 3.3% withholding on business income is not tied to nationality or visa type. What decides your rate is whether you are a tax resident of Korea, which usually means keeping a home here or staying 183 days or more in the tax year. A tax resident on a work visa is withheld exactly like a Korean national.
Yes, if you are a tax resident with business income. The 3.3% is a payment on account, not a final settlement. Between May 1 and May 31 you file an annual return that reflects your real expenses and personal deductions, and the difference is refunded to you or collected from you.
It comes out of the May filing. You file on Hometax, or through a tax accountant, and any overpayment is transferred to the bank account you nominate a few weeks later. Nothing arrives if you never file, and there is no automatic refund for freelancers.
Because 3.3% is the resident rate. Payments to a non-resident for personal services are withheld under different rules, at a higher rate. A tax treaty between Korea and your country can reduce or remove it, but only if you give the payer a treaty application before they pay you.
Not for a resident. It is an advance. Your final number depends on how much of the year's income you can offset with expenses and deductions, so some people get money back and others owe a little more. For a non-resident, the withholding usually does settle the tax.
That is other income, which covers one-off payments such as a lecture fee, an article, or a prize. Korea treats 60% of the payment as deemed expenses and taxes the remaining 40% at 20%, plus a local income tax on top. That works out to an effective 8.8% of the whole fee.
No. The maths runs in your browser, nothing is sent anywhere, and there is no sign-up.

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