South Korea is considering increasing the maximum limit of purchases eligible for immediate tax refunds by foreign visitors as part of its initiative to boost the tourism industry, the finance ministry said Monday.
Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho unveiled the plan to reporters before returning home from Marrakesh, western Morocco, after attending the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank last week.
"We are considering significantly increasing the ceiling," Choo said, without elaborating on details of the amount, only noting the new rule will be applied next year.
Currently, South Korea provides on-spot tax refunds for individual payments of up to 500,000 won (US$370) at designated stores, with a maximum cap of 2.5 million won on the total purchases. At departure halls, there are no restrictions on purchases eligible for tax refunds.
A notice board provides details about tax refunds in central Seoul, in this file photo taken Aug. 13, 2023. (Yonhap)
A notice board provides details about tax refunds in central Seoul, in this file photo taken Aug. 13, 2023. (Yonhap)
The latest plan came after the number of visitors to South Korea plunged to 3.2 million in 2022, compared with 17.5 million tallied in 2019, in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The finance ministry said the updated policy will help South Korea attract more foreign tourists and bolster domestic consumption.
In 2019, South Korea offered immediate tax refunds worth 31.6 billion won to foreign visitors, up 26 percent from 24.9 billion won tallied in 2018.
The government, meanwhile, has been making efforts to attract more Chinese tourists as Beijing decided to lift the ban on group tours to South Korea in August, ending a six-year hiatus caused by frayed relations following the deployment of a U.S. defense system here.
Source: Yonhap News Agency