지방세법상 취득세 및 등록세의 개선방안에 관한 연구

지방세법상 부동산 취득세·등록세의 개선방안을 연구했다.

The acquisition tax and the registration tax, items in the process of real estate acquisition, account for high proportion of revenues of the local tax. The two items account for 37.4% of revenues of the local tax as of 2005. In addition, the acquisition tax and the registration tax can be regarded as double taxation as a matter of fact in that those items are based on the same taxation standard in the taxation article, the assessment standard and tax rates. This study was focused on proving that the acquisition tax and the registration tax are doubly taxed, through comparing the conditions necessary for taxing the two items with each other.

The problem of double taxation causes the discrimination between taxation articles and tax-free articles, complicates tax laws in case the acquisition tax and the registration tax are not consistently taxed, and increases the market price. Moreover, double taxation and high taxes make local finances unsteady, and so it is difficult to levy capital gain tax properly. There are various ways to ease or remove the problems caused by the double taxation of the acquisition tax and the registration tax. Abolishing both taxes, abolishing the registration tax, abolishing the acquisition tax, and reducing tax rates under the present system are those methods.

This study proposes to abolish the registration tax, and to maintain the acquisition tax. The followings are the reasons. First, the method of abolishing both taxes is unreasonable in actuality in consideration of the present communal finances. Second, the registration tax complicates tax laws relatively to the acquisition tax, because it stipulates over 60 kinds of tax rates. It is desirable to abolish the registration tax instead of the acquisition tax in order to simplify the tax system. Third, the registration tax is reasonable to be abolished because it can be regarded as a commission the same as revenue-stamp duty or stock exchange taxes.

On this wise, tax laws can be simplified as well as the tax system can be arranged in case the registration is abolished and is absorbed into the acquisition tax. However, the standard tax rate of the acquisition tax (2%) should be increased in respect that local finances may be worsened in case the registration tax is abolished and is absorbed into the acquisition tax. The rate should be fixed after a full study on desirable real estate transaction tax, but the problem is beyond the scope of this study. This study was focused on proposing the necessity of removing double taxation in real estate transaction and its rational scheme.