💼 Korea 3.3% Freelancer Tax Calculator
See how much you actually receive after the 3.3% withholding tax on freelance income in Korea — or work backwards to find how much to invoice to receive a target amount.
How to use it
- Gross → net: enter the fee in your contract or invoice to see what will hit your bank account after the 3.3% withholding.
- Net → gross: if you want to receive exactly ₩1,000,000, enter that amount and the calculator tells you what to invoice.
- Paid by several clients this month? List each gross payment on its own line — tax is calculated per payment and added up.
What is the 3.3% tax?
In Korea, fees paid to individuals who work independently without a business registration — freelance designers, translators, tutors, English teachers paid per class, delivery riders, content creators — are treated as business income (사업소득). The client must withhold 3% income tax + 0.3% local income tax before paying you and report it to the tax office.
Income tax = payment × 3%(truncated to the nearest ₩10)Local income tax = income tax × 10%(truncated to the nearest ₩10)Net = payment − income tax − local income tax- Reverse: roughly
net ÷ 0.967; the calculator adjusts for rounding so the net matches exactly.
Small-amount exemption
If the income tax to withhold is under ₩1,000, nothing is withheld — so payments of ₩33,333 or less arrive in full. Since July 2024 this exemption no longer applies to ongoing, repeated personal-service income such as platform delivery work; choose "Don't apply" in that case.
3.3% vs 8.8%: business income vs other income
| Business income 3.3% | Other income 8.8% | |
|---|---|---|
| Applies to | Ongoing, repeated work (your main freelance job) | One-off work (a guest lecture, an article, a judging fee) |
| Withholding | Payment × 3.3% | (Payment − 60% deemed expenses) × 22% = payment × 8.8% |
| On ₩1,000,000 | ₩967,000 | ₩912,000 |
| Tax-free up to | ₩33,333 (small-amount exemption) | ₩125,000 (minimum taxable threshold) |
| May tax return | Always required | Optional if other income is ₩3M or less a year |
Filing your tax return in May
The 3.3% is only a prepayment. Business income for the year is reported in the comprehensive income tax return between 1 and 31 May of the following year, via Hometax (English menu available) or the Sontax app.
- If your income is modest or you have expenses, you often get a large part of the 3.3% refunded.
- If you also have a salary or high freelance income, you may owe more — set some money aside.
- Skipping the return means no refund, and penalties if tax was due.
Notes for foreign freelancers
- Visa permission comes first — freelance work is only legal if your visa allows it (e.g. F-2, F-4, F-5, F-6) or you have permission for activities outside your status. E-2 teachers generally cannot take private freelance lessons.
- Non-residents — if you are not a Korean tax resident, different withholding rules (often 20–22%, or a tax treaty rate) may apply instead of 3.3%.
Reference calculation under the 2026 Income Tax Act. Clients may round differently by a few won, and whether income is business or other income depends on the nature of the work. When in doubt, call the National Tax Service (126, English service available) or a tax accountant.