Korean FBAR Explained: Essential Guide for 2025

Joseph Zoh
12 minutes ago
2 min read

🇰🇷 What is the Korean FBAR?

The Korean FBAR refers to a regulation by the National Tax Service (NTS) of Korea, formally known as the "Report of Overseas Financial Accounts" (해외금융계좌 신고). It is similar to the U.S. FBAR (Foreign Bank Account Report), but applies to Korean residents and certain Korean entities.

This regulation requires Korean tax residents and corporations to report their overseas financial accounts if the total value of these accounts exceeds a certain threshold during any day of the reporting year.

📌 Key Points about the Korean FBAR

1️⃣ Who Must Report?

Individuals: Korean residents (including Korean citizens and long-term foreign residents)
Corporations: Korean corporations and business entities

2️⃣ What to Report?

Bank accounts
Securities accounts
Insurance accounts
Trust accounts
Any other types of foreign financial accounts

3️⃣ Threshold for Reporting

KRW 500 million (approx. USD 400,000) or more in total across all foreign accounts at any point during the year

4️⃣ Reporting Period

The reporting deadline is June 30 of the following year
Report covers the entire preceding year (e.g., report by June 30, 2025 for accounts in 2024)

5️⃣ Penalties

Failure to report may result in significant penalties, including:
- Up to 20% of the unreported amount as a fine
- Criminal charges for willful violations

🔑 Differences from the U.S. FBAR:

Threshold: U.S. FBAR is for accounts totaling over USD 10,000, whereas Korea’s threshold is much higher (KRW 500 million)
Filing Authority: U.S. FBAR is filed with FinCEN, Korean FBAR with the NTS
Form: U.S. uses FinCEN Form 114, while Korea uses a specific NTS online system

💬 Summary

The Korean FBAR is a tax reporting requirement for residents and entities with significant foreign financial assets. It's a part of Korea’s effort to combat tax evasion and promote transparency in offshore assets. Compliance is crucial, and the penalties for non-compliance can be substantial.

#KoreanFBAR #OverseasFinancialAaccountRreport