고급주택 관련 취득세 중과세 제도의 문제점과 개선방안 = Issues and Improvement Measures for the Heavy Taxation System on Acquisition Tax for Luxury Housing

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Acquisition tax is payable upon the acquisition of certain assets, such as real estate or vehicles. For assets deemed luxury properties―such as golf courses, high-end entertainment venues, luxury housing, and luxury ships―an additional acquisition tax rate of 8% is imposed, distinguishing them from ordinary real estate.
Specifically, for luxury housing, a system of heavy taxation at 7.5 times the general acquisition tax rate was established in 1975. For nearly 50 years, luxury housing and other luxury properties have been subject to a fivefold increase in acquisition tax, intended to discourage their acquisition. However, this increased taxation has been largely ineffective in deterring the acquisition of luxury properties and has primarily resulted in disputes between taxpayers and tax authorities.
Therefore, it is recommended that the heavy taxation system for luxury housing be abolished. The heavy taxation on luxury housing is applied based not only on the property's value but also on its area, leading to continuous disputes between taxpayers and local governments, the taxing authorities, over area calculations.
Particularly contentious is whether the areas of parking lots and elevator halls should be included in the total area calculation, which determines if a property qualifies as luxury housing. Tax authorities argue that these areas should be included in the housing area, while taxpayers contend they should be excluded.
From a legislative standpoint, it is reasonable to exclude parking lot areas from the housing area. Similarly, elevator hall areas should be excluded from the housing area unless there are exceptional circumstances.