Korean Job Discussion Forums

[lulu144]

okay so I was under the impression bc I didn't have any kids of mortgages in canada, I didn't really have to do anyting about making money over here in korea. My dad at home is currently doing my income tax and this is what he said

I called Revenue Canada ( I did not give them our name) and asked them how we should handle your Korean income and they claimed that you should declare your income from August to December 31 and also declare any taxes that have been deducted from your pay cheque. Revenue Canada will deduct the foreign taxes that you paid so that you will not be double taxed.

I REALLY don't want to have to pay anything in Canada. What have you guys down in the past??

any info is greatly appreciated~

[Vollrath]

do nothing. pay nothing. say nothing. 99.99% chance they won't find you.

[khyber]

get declared a nonresident. Assuming your ties are limited, that would also keep you from paying (though you would still have to file,) your taxes.

I'm in the same basic state, but I can't "not" do anything as the previous poster suggested (my wife's all moral and shit)

[lulu144]

do how do you declare yourself a non resident??

[Voyeur]

I sometimes wonder about taxes.

I've been here 4 years. The first was with a normal school and they paid my taxes in the "normal way". The second was with an agency and they paid my taxes in a similar manner. The last two have been with a school where I am a private contractor, make over 4 million a month (often considerably more), and am supposed to file my own taxes. The school only deducts the 3.3% min. witholding tax.

Until 5 months ago I had a bank account and loan in Canada - but that is it. I have never declared my self still a resident or a non-resident. I have never filed Korean taxes either to get a return or to pay more if more is due. I have never checked if my employers have filed my taxes accurately. I cannot really believe that 3.3% covers making over 50,000,000 won in a year two years in a row - esp. where you are not a "salaried" employee and do not have access to any of the special deductions intended to help out the "working man" and that are only available to salaried employees.

My friend insists that however I play it, I probably either owe Korea like $6 - 7,000 !!! or Revenue Canda EVEN more!!! He figures it will catch up to me if I keep staying in Korea and at the very least, I could have trouble getting my return of pension contrinutions from my first year whenever I try to leave the country.

Is he right? Is it ridiculous to expect I can just live here forever paying 3.3% TOTAL taxes and make 4 million, 5 million, and later even more a month? Is it ridiculous to expect that my entire retroactive tax bill won't one day come and bite me in the butt? Is it ridiculous to play the ostrich head-in-sand game with the tax man forever?

[Big Mac]

You can get this non-residency form and fill it out.

http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pbg/tf/nr73/README.html

If you have three or more ties, they will most likely tell you that you are a factual resident of Canada, which means you have to pay tax on your Korean income. If they say you are a non-resident you won't have to pay anything.

If you have more than three ties, start cutting them now. The first time I filled out the form I had too many ties and it came back saying I was a factual resident. So I cancelled my credit card, closed my bank accounts, sent back my health card and all kinds of stuff like that to get it down to three. Then I re-filed the form and it came back saying I was a non-resident. So then I filed my tax return for the year and put "0" in all the boxes for income. They sent me back an assessment with 0s everywhere and all was good.

This year I sent in the form with my tax return and I haven't got the assessment back yet, so I'm not sure what will happen. When I went back to Canada I re-opened my bank account and I'm hoping that won't change things.

Remember, the form that you fill out will only get you an "opinion" on your residency from Revenue Canada. So you can fight their decision...it's not a binding one.

Oh...and when you file your return, send it to the International Tax Services Office in Ottawa. Don't send it to the office you would send it to if you were living in Canada. Also, put your Korean address on the tax return...if you put a Canadian address it won't help your case of being a non-resident. They will send your assessment to your Korean address. It will take a little longer than normal too.

[Voyeur]

If I do this now, would I technically be required to pay taxes on my last 4 years of income in Korea???!!!

It sounds like Canada wants you to pay whichever is HIGHER the Korean or Canadian taxes if you are a resident IOW you can deduct the foreign tax, but if Canadian rates are higher (and they always are) then they want you to pay the difference.

Dude, for me that might litterally be $10,000 to $15,000 at Canadian tax rates given how little I paid here and how high rates are there (and being here 4 years).

I don't really know what to do. I have zero documentation for anything - hell I haven't even kept last months receipts. I'm 4 years in and have never filed in Korea (and have been supposed to for the last 2 years) and have never filed in Canada for 4 years (and have never declared myself a non-resident). And I have NO documentation of taxes paid or income earned for any of the last 4 years. And that is paying only 3.3 % tax on over 50,000,000 a year for the last 2 of them.

I keep feeling I am screwed somehow, that I am sitting on a ticking time bomb. Do I need to do something? How does one begin to sort out this mess - or can I just keep ignoring it lol (please say yes).

[jinju]

[lulu144]

okay so what if I it is determined that I have to pay taxes in Canada. How do I prove my income?? I don't even get pay stubs and I can't print off bank account statements.....

[ucfvgirl]

I am in the same boat. I have been working at my public school for 1.5 years and have never ever gotten a pay stub. So, I have no idea how much I am paying for taxes. I too am from Canada. I am just not filing until I go home in August. I thought it is too much of a headache to deal wtih it now. But, I have the same question: how do I prove how much I made and how much I paid?

[khyber]

my first year in korea, i got declared non residency with a bank account...but besides that, a passport I had NOTHING showing me to be a resident.

Things are pretty much the same this year with the exception that I now have a credit card. It's been that way for the last 2 years. I've filled in my forms but I have to get declared a nonresident (well, given their "opinion"). After I get that, I'm going to send in my tax forms with a copy of their declaration and zeros where they should be.

[Missile Command Kid]

[lulu144]

in terms of getting my school to sign something saying how much I made and how much tax was deducted.... I just quit my job and start a new one on monday...

So I don't know what to do. maybe nothing?

[bellum99]

I will just say nothing..I will go home and file like normal. If they ask I will say that I was traveling and doing missionary work. I didn't make money. I was not a resident of Canada during this time. Don't they have to PROVE the income...good freaking luck with that.

[Ilsanman]

If I am ever back-taxed, here is what I will do.

I will be getting some educaitonal certificates here. That amount of time I will write off as 'no income'.

I will declare the rest of the time as 'earning 2.0 million a month' and pay as little as I can.

And they'd best be waiting.