Korean employees generally do not file their own return: the employer reconciles the year every January and February. What documentation the settlement requires and when it is due.
- Four major social insurances tracked in parallel
- Workers' Compensation Insurance is employer-only and industry-rated
- What are Korea's four major social insurances and their 2026 rates?
South Korea's corporate income tax is progressive across four brackets, raised for fiscal years beginning on or after 1 January 2026: 10% up to KRW 200 million, 20% up to KRW 20 billion, 22% up to KRW 300 billion, and 25% above that, with a further 10% local income tax surcharge on the national tax lifting the effective top rate to 27.5%. VAT is a flat 10% with no reduced rates. Employers also administer four mandatory social insurances — National Pension, National Health Insurance (with a linked long-term care premium), Employment Insurance and Workers' Compensation Insurance — each with its own base, cap and cost-sharing structure.
What an employee costs in South Korea. Every figure below is published on the South Korea country page.
| South Korea | |
|---|---|
| Minimum wage | KRW 10,320/hour (2026), ~KRW 2,156,880/month on a standard 209-hour basis — a single national rate with no regional variation |
| Currency | KRW (Korean won) |
| Official language | Korean |
| Legal forms | Chusik Hoesa (주식회사, stock company) · Yuhan Hoesa (유한회사, limited liability company) |
| Corporate tax rate | Progressive 10% / 20% / 22% / 25% (FYs from 1 Jan 2026) + 10% local surtax on the national tax — up to 27.5% effective |
What makes it complex in South Korea
- Four major social insurances tracked in parallel — , each with a distinct contribution base and cap — National Pension is mid-way through an eight-year phased rate increase running to 13.0% by 2033.
- Workers' Compensation Insurance is employer-only and industry-rated — (0.6%–18.5%), unlike National Pension, Health Insurance and Employment Insurance, which are cost-shared with the employee.
What are Korea's four major social insurances and their 2026 rates?
National Pension (4.75% employer, split equally with the employee, the first step of a phased rise to 13.0% by 2033), National Health Insurance (3.595% employer, split equally, plus a long-term care premium set at 13.14% of the health premium), Employment Insurance (0.9% employer of 1.8% total), and Workers' Compensation Insurance (0.6%–18.5%, employer-only, rated by industry risk).
What is yeonmal jeongsan and who is responsible for it?
Yeonmal jeongsan (연말정산) is Korea's mandatory year-end tax settlement. The employer, not the employee, calculates each employee's actual annual income tax liability, reconciles it against amounts withheld monthly throughout the year, and submits the finalized settlement to the National Tax Service by the end of February following the tax year. Overpayment is refunded to the employee, typically in the February paycheck; underpayment is deducted.
Four major social insurances tracked in parallel is one of the points HTLC Network handles for clients operating in South Korea, within a single engagement that covers every other country they operate in — executed locally, governed centrally.
In South Korea the scope is: Full-cycle Korean payroll including the four major social insurances and the year-end tax settlement (yeonmal jeongsan) administration on behalf of each employee.
See Payroll & Workforce Management in South Korea for the full scope, or the South Korea country page for the statutory framework across every service.
Figures as published on the HTLC Network country pages, reviewed September 2026 and collected from public sources. They are not a substitute for advice on a specific case and should be verified before being relied on.