Is Higher Land Holding Tax the Solution for Korea's Land Problems?

토지보유과세강화(土地保有課稅强化)의 당위성(當爲性)에 대한 검토(檢討)

This paper examines the increasingly popular belief that higher holding tax will be the ultimate solution for Korea's land problems which include excessive concentration of ownership, high and rapidly increasing land prices, and rampant speculation. In principle, land holding tax can supplement capital gains tax in recapturing capital gains from land or suppress returns from land investment returns in line with other forms of asset. This paper shows, however, that the tax burden must be drastically increased for the tax to achieve such goals, and the resistance from tax payers is sure to be intense. As long as the price expectation remains high, as in Korea where land prices have increased 19% annually during the past 18 years, even such increase in the tax may have little impact on landlords' behaviors, the price trend, or the ownership structure. More effective solutions for Korea's land problems are relaxing land use regulations to encourage the supply for urban land and improving the performance of capital gains tax to recapture windfall gains from land. This paper also notes that the so-called "lock-in effect" of the capital gains tax seems to be exaggerated. Land holding tax should be viewed as a revenue raiser for local governments rather than an anti-speculative policy tool. Abandoning unattainable policy goals and adhering to the general principles of taxation, will make land holding tax much simpler, and will better function as a local revenue source.

본고(本稿)는 부동산, 특히 토지에 대한 보유과세가 강화되어야 한다는 주장들을 검토하여 토지보유과세(土地保有課稅)를 강화하는 것이 바람직한가, 그럴 경우 어느 정도의 세부담(稅負擔) 증가(增加)가 필요한가를 살펴봄으로써 세제개편(稅制改編)의 실천적인 지침을 도출하는 데에 그 목적이 있다. 빠른 지가상승(地價上昇)이 계속되는 상황에서는 보유과세가 가진 효과들이 나타나기 어려우므로, 토지개발(土地開發) 및 공급(供給)의 확대로 지가상승(地價上昇) 추세(趨勢)를 완화시키는 한편, 양도과세(讓渡課稅)의 기능을 제고(提高)하는 것이 우선적으로 추진되어야 할 과제이며, 토지보유과세(土地保有課稅)의 증가(增加)는 토지정책적(土地政策的) 목적(目的)에서보다는 지방세수(地方稅收)의 확대(擴大)와 같은 목적(目的)을 위해 지속적으로 추구해야 할 정책방향이다. 토지보유과세(土地保有課稅)는 조세저항 등의 부작용을 보아가면서 점진적으로 높여 가되 보다 '좋은' 조세의 특성을 가지도록 개편해 가야 할 것이다.