🏡 Guide · 2026-04-27
Korean Capital-Gains Tax Exemption — 5 Conditions (2026 Edition)
The five Korean capital-gains tax exemption conditions for 2026 — one-home household, 2-year holding, 2-year residency, temporary 2-home, and inheritance/rural exceptions.
TL;DR
The 2026 baseline for Korea's one-home capital-gains tax exemption is 2 years of holding + 2 years of residency (in regulated zones) + sale price ≤ ₩1.2B. Five common pitfalls break this baseline and can turn an "exempt" sale into a ₩100M tax bill.
Condition 1 — One household, one home
Total homes are summed across all household members.
- A child under 30 living with parents counts as the same household
- Pre-construction rights (분양권/입주권) acquired after 2021 count as homes
- An officetel used for residence counts as a home
The legal test is "married couple + same household." Faking a separate household triggers penalties.
Condition 2 — Held for 2+ years
The clock starts on closing date or registry-filing date, whichever is earlier. Sales under 1 year are taxed at 70%; 1–2 years at 60%.
Condition 3 — 2+ years of actual residency (regulated zones)
Homes acquired in regulated zones after 2017-08-03 require 2 years of real residency. You must prove both resident registration AND living traces (utilities, deliveries, card use).
Condition 4 — Temporary 2-home exception
Sell the old home within 3 years of acquiring the new one (2 years if both are in regulated zones since 2022-05).
| Scenario | Deadline to sell old home |
|---|---|
| Non-regulated → Non-regulated | 3 years |
| Regulated → Regulated (post-2022.5) | 2 years |
| Pre-construction right → New build | 3 years from move-in |
Condition 5 — Inheritance / rural / long-term lease
- Inherited home + 1 regular home → selling the regular home can qualify
- Rural homes (myeon-level area, official price ≤ ₩200M) excluded from count
- Registered long-term lease homes follow a separate track (new registrations restricted from 2025)
Self-diagnostic
- Use Capital-Gains Tax Calculator to model the >₩1.2B portion
- Use Detailed CGT Calculator for long-term and basic deductions
- Use Property Registry Self-Check to verify ownership history
Top 5 ways exemptions get broken
- Forgetting a child's pre-construction right when filing
- Failing residency in regulated zones (registered but not actually living)
- Missing the temporary 2-home deadline by even a week
- Misclassifying an inherited rural home (over area/price limit)
- Forgetting progressive tax on the >₩1.2B portion
Bottom line
Always finalize the self-diagnostic before closing day. Penalties of 10–40% apply if you discover the issue after filing. When any of the five conditions is ambiguous, request a pre-ruling from the local tax office or NTS Hometax.