A relative in Korea has been receiving the bills
An aunt, cousin or sibling receives the notice and pays it informally. It works until they move, fall ill or stop answering, and nobody abroad knows what was paid.
Annual service · Korean property tax
Your Korean property tax, handled while you live abroad
Sanghyun Cho, a Korean attorney, is registered with the local government as your tax manager (납세관리인). Property-tax notices come to our Seoul office instead of a relative’s address. We send each notice to you in English with payment instructions, confirm the payment with the tax office and keep the receipts.
- Korean attorney as your registered tax manager
- English by email, any time zone
- No trip to Korea in the usual case
Is this for you?
The service is designed for situations like these.
You are looking after a parent’s Korean property
Your parent lives abroad and owns land or a home in Korea, often inherited. You want a reliable system now, and records in order for the family later.
Notices are hard to receive or pay from abroad
Korean online tax services usually need Korean identity verification. Paper notices go to an old address. You want someone in Korea whose job it is to receive them.
What the annual fee covers
For one owner and the properties listed in your engagement letter.
01
Registered tax manager
The attorney stays on file with the local government as the owner’s tax manager for local taxes (“tax manager” is the official English term for 납세관리인; it is also called a tax representative), so assessment and demand notices are served at our office rather than risking public-notice service.
02
Every notice sent to you in English
We scan each notice we receive and email it with a short English summary: which property, which tax, the amount and the due date.
03
Payment instructions and confirmation
We send the amount, due date and payment instructions, and confirm the payment with the tax office once it is made. Before you engage us, we confirm a payment method you can use from your country and any bank, transfer or currency-conversion charges.
04
Receipts kept, year summarised
We keep the notices and payment receipts and send a year-end statement listing each notice, amount and payment for your records and your accountant.
05
A lawyer reads anything unusual
Arrears notices, a changed assessment or an unexpected bill are flagged with the attorney’s view on whether anything needs to be done and by when. Any legal work that follows is quoted before it starts.
06
Change or exit handled
If you sell, the owner dies or you end the service, we tell you what has to be reported and file the change so notices do not go astray.
Price and first-year cost
You see the whole first-year cost in writing before you sign.
- Annual management
- USD 600 / yearFor the owner and the properties expressly accepted in the engagement letter. Paid annually in advance.
- One-time setup fee
- Fixed fee, quotedPreparing the appointment and authorisation documents, confirming the local office’s requirements, filing the appointment and checking the agreed tax records. An office visit or certified overseas documents may be needed. Quoted after we see your latest tax notice.
- Taxes and third-party costs
- At costThe tax itself, government and certified-record fees, courier, and notarisation or consular fees on your side.
First-year service fees = setup fee + USD 600. Later years = USD 600. Property tax and agreed third-party costs are extra; any applicable VAT is itemised in your written proposal.
If you already have a recent tax notice and know which properties are involved, registration is a short, fixed-fee step. If you are unsure what the family owns or whether taxes are current, we first propose a records review, and you decide whether to go ahead.
Not included (quoted separately if needed)
- Tax returns, tax calculations or checking whether an assessment is correct
- Settling old arrears, objections and appeals
- Finding unknown parcels, correcting title records or old identity numbers
- Sale, inheritance registration or disputes between co-owners
- National taxes such as comprehensive real-estate holding tax, capital-gains or inheritance tax
How it starts
Most communication is by email. The owner signs the required documents abroad; we confirm the signing and certification steps beforehand.
- 1Check eligibilityAnswer a few questions below. No identity numbers or documents yet.
- 2We confirm scopeWithin one business day (Korea time) we reply by email and ask for the latest tax notice if you have it.
- 3Full first-year cost in writingYou receive the fixed setup fee, the annual fee and expected expenses in one written proposal.
- 4Engagement and authorisationThe owner signs the engagement letter and an authorisation. We send instructions for notarisation or consular certification where you live.
- 5Registration and startThe attorney files the appointment report with the local tax office, checks the current tax position and sends you a short summary.
Management starts on the date the local government accepts the appointment report, not on the date of inquiry or payment. We tell you that date in writing.
The service runs for one year at a time. 30 days before it ends we invite you to renew; renewal requires your agreement and payment. You can end the service at any time by email; we then report the change to the local tax office and return your records. The engagement letter states how any unused prepaid period is treated.
What you receive
Two examples of the emails you get during the year.
Property tax notice received — Land, Seongnam (due 30 Sep)
- Owner
- Sample Owner
- Property
- Land, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si (3 parcels)
- Tax
- Property tax (land), 2026 regular assessment
- Amount
- ₩21,847,600 (about USD 15,800)
- Due date
- 30 September 2026
The amount matches last year’s pattern. Please pay by 25 September using the attached instructions; we will confirm the payment with the tax office.
Payment confirmed — receipt attached
- Paid
- ₩21,847,600 on 22 September 2026
- Confirmed with
- Seongnam-si tax office records
- Balance
- No outstanding amount for this notice
- Next expected
- July 2027 (building/housing, if any)
The receipt is attached and saved in your annual file.
Examples use fictional data.
Who is responsible
Sanghyun Cho
Attorney at Law (Republic of Korea) · Principal, Sanghyun Law Office
The attorney himself is the registered tax manager and is responsible for every notice and payment confirmation. Formerly Assistant Secretary to the President for Legal Affairs, Policy Advisor to the Minister of Economy and Finance and an associate at Kim & Chang; educated at the University of Chicago and Seoul National University School of Law.
- Office in Yongsan, Seoul
- Communication in English or Korean
- Email first; video calls by appointment
Questions before you apply
I am asking on behalf of my mother or father. Can I apply?
Yes. You can fill in the form and be our main contact and the person who pays. The owner is the client and signs the engagement letter and authorisation. If the owner can no longer make decisions, tell us: a different, separately quoted route may be needed.
Does the owner have to come to Korea?
Not in the usual case. The owner signs the authorisation where they live, with notarisation and an apostille or Korean consular certification as required, and the attorney makes the filing in Seoul or at the local tax office. We send step-by-step instructions for the owner’s country.
Why is there a setup fee on top of USD 600?
Setting up is a one-off job: preparing the appointment and the authorisation the owner signs abroad, confirming what the local tax office requires, filing the appointment and checking the current tax records. Depending on the office, this can involve a visit and certified overseas documents. So it is priced once, as a fixed fee quoted before you commit.
What if some tax is already unpaid?
We identify it during setup and tell you the amount and deadline. Paying it is the owner’s cost. If you disagree with an assessment, do not wait for the next bill: challenges have deadlines, and that legal work is quoted separately.
Does this cover all of my Korean taxes?
No. It covers local property tax on the properties listed in the engagement letter, together with the local taxes billed on the same notice. National taxes such as comprehensive real-estate holding tax, capital-gains tax and inheritance tax, and any tax return or calculation, are outside it.
Could a relative simply stay on as the tax manager?
Yes, and if a reliable relative is willing, a formally reported appointment of that person may be all you need. This service provides an agreed office contact instead, with English updates and organised records.
Where in Korea can the property be?
Properties anywhere in Korea can be considered. Each city, county or district that assesses the property needs its own filing, and additional filings are reflected in the setup quote. The annual fee is USD 600 for the owner and properties expressly accepted in the engagement letter.
Check eligibility
A few questions about you and the property. Please do not send identity numbers, tax notices or other documents yet: we will tell you what is needed and how to send it securely.
The service is provided under a written engagement letter, which governs its scope. This page is general information and does not create an attorney-client relationship.