Bithumb Filed Complaint Against The National Tax Service

The well-known and the biggest South Korean cryptocurrency exchange, Bithumb filed a complaint with the Tax Tribunal against the National Tax Service (NTS). The crypto exchange company wants the Tribunal to nullify a tax for nearly $69.3 million, which was imposed by the National Tax Service (NTS) on Bithumb’s customers as we are reading further in the blockchain latest news.

At the end of 2019, the National Tax Service (NTS) imposed $69.3 million of withholding tax on the customers of Bithumb according to a certain report. Then this was the first case where the South Korean authorities had taxed crypto transactions.

The well-known exchange expressed that it will take legal actions towards the decision of the National Tax Service (NTS), and it looks like they have fulfilled their promise. Earlier this day, South Korean news reported that Bithumb filed a complaint with the Tax Tribunal. The crypto exchange claims that the needed taxes are already paid by them and that the National Tax Service (NTS) request is without any ground. An official from Bithumb spoke on the issue:

 “We paid the full amount and have since been preparing for arguments. We believe we will be given a chance to clarify our stance in court.”

The withholding (retention) tax must be paid to South Korea by the payer of the income and not the recipient. The Tribunal has to bring a decision on the case in a deadline of 90 days. The defense of Bithumb is grounded on the fact that cryptocurrencies are still not recognized as currencies by the South Korean law, and that authorities should not tax them based on that.

This is where the arguments crash. The National Tax Service (NTS) considers that the gains withdrawn in Korean Won from foreigners must be taxed. But experts on the issue are supporting the argument of Bithumb, that cryptos are not still regulated under the tax laws of South Korea. An adviser to the Financial Supervisory Service, Choi Hwoa-In Supposedly talked about this:

“Bitcoin under the current law is not an asset. It is clear and simple. The Ministry of Economy and Finance already made that clear. The NTS pushing ahead with the tax imposition is baseless and groundless, especially since it is still awaiting the ministry opinion on the same matter it sought again.”