In an exclusive report, Sports Kyunghyang accused Can This Love Be Translated? actor Kim Seon Ho of tax evasion, alleging he used methods similar to those currently under investigation in ASTRO’s Cha Eunwoo’s case.
Actor Kim Seon Ho (left) and ASTRO’s Cha Eunwoo (right) | Sports Kyunghyang
The media outlet noted Fantagio stars Cha Eunwoo and Kim Seon Ho share more in common than meets the eye. One notable similarity is that both operate family-run corporations separate from their agency. In Kim Seon Ho’s case, circumstances have been uncovered suggesting he may have engaged in what amounts to “tax-saving (tax evasion)” practices through such a corporation.
It was confirmed on the 1st that Kim Seon Ho has been operating a separate performance-planning company registered at his residence in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Kim serves as the CEO of this corporation.
Established in January 2024, the company lists not only performance planning as its business purpose, but also advertising agency services, advertising media sales, media content creation, broadcast program production, distribution, and services, medical manufacturing, wholesale, retail, trade, and design, as well as HR and service-related consulting, real estate sales, and leasing, among others.
Although entertainment-related businesses were included in its stated purposes, the company was not registered as a public entertainment and culture planning business.
| Sports Kyunghyang
The company’s internal director, Mr. Kim, and its auditor, Ms. Park, are Kim Seon Ho’s parents. Analysts say that forming a board composed solely of family members, without any external professional management, appears designed to allow company funds to be flexibly managed within the family.
In fact, testimony has been secured stating that Kim Seon Ho used the company’s bank account to pay his father and mother’s monthly salaries, ranging from several million to tens of millions of won. The parents reportedly transferred the salaries back to Kim Seon Ho each month.
In addition, it was confirmed that Kim Seon Ho’s parents used company-owned credit cards to pay for living expenses and entertainment. His father allegedly used the corporate card to cover cigarette purchases and payments at karaoke bars, and even the Genesis GV80 he drives was registered under the company’s name.
This appears to have been an attempt to increase company expenses and classify them as deductible costs, thereby reducing corporate tax liability. The private use of corporate cards may also constitute breach of trust or embezzlement in the course of business.
Notably, the corporation’s registered address is the same as Kim Seon Ho’s residence, making it difficult to dismiss suspicions that it is, in effect, a paper company.
Like Cha Eunwoo, who was separately notified of a tax reassessment exceeding ₩20.0 billion KRW (about $13.8 million USD), Kim Seon Ho, who is also signed to Fantagio, has been found to have created a similar separate planning company and allegedly engaged in substantive tax evasion.
| THE FACT
Taken together, Kim Seon Ho’s corporation appears to function as a special-purpose entity for asset growth and income distribution, exhibiting a “tax-saving (tax evasion) structure” very similar to Cha Eunwoo’s case.
The timing of the company’s establishment has also drawn attention. Kim Seon Ho set up the corporation in January 2024, a period when he was in the process of renegotiating his contract with his former agency, Salt Entertainment, and roughly one year before his transfer to Fantagio in March of last year.
In fact, Kim Seon Ho reportedly received a signing bonus worth tens of billions of won when entering into an exclusive contract with Fantagio. Experts believe he may have established the corporation in advance to funnel future signing bonuses and payments.
Furthermore, by including real estate sales, leasing, development, and management services among the company’s purposes, Kim Seon Ho appeared to signal serious intent to engage in real estate-related business. If loans are taken out under the corporation’s name, regulatory restrictions are far more lenient than for individuals, and interest expenses can be treated as costs to reduce taxes.
At Fantagio, concerns are emerging that the same family-corporation-based indirect settlement structure may have been applied not only to Cha Eunwoo but also to Kim Seon Ho.
If Fantagio paid Kim Seon Ho’s signing bonus and settlement fees to this corporation, given its structure closely resembling Cha Eunwoo’s, it would constitute income diversion—reducing personal income while inflating corporate revenue.
Placing family members in executive roles is also interpreted as a way to provide parents with living expenses through salaries and bonuses without incurring gift tax, an area the National Tax Service closely monitors as “fictitious labor costs.”
Attorney Roh Jong Eon, managing partner at Law Firm Jonjae, stated, “The confirmation of identical income-diversion patterns using family-owned corporations, first with Cha Eunwoo and now with Kim Seon Ho, suggests circumstances that raise suspicion of not merely individual misconduct, but a ‘systematic design’ at the agency level.”
Kim Seon Ho established his one-man agency in January 2024 and announced his exclusive contract with Fantagio in March 2025. Some observers argue the corporation may have been created in advance to receive signing bonuses and other payments.
South Korea’s National Tax Service
As tax evasion allegations following the same pattern have surfaced for Kim Seon Ho after Cha Eunwoo, scrutiny of Fantagio itself has intensified.
Critics argue it is unlikely the company was unaware of such irregular settlement structures involving its artists. If Fantagio knew and either condoned or actively intervened, it could be considered a serious violation of accounting transparency for a publicly listed company.
Separate from Cha Eunwoo’s tax reassessment exceeding ₩20.0 billion KRW (about $13.8 million USD), Fantagio itself was reportedly hit with an additional tax bill of ₩8.20 billion KRW (about $5.65 million USD).
Attorney Roh added, “If Fantagio repeatedly applied these tax evasion–suspected structures to its core artists, it raises questions of intent. If the company knowingly and deliberately paid signing bonuses to these corporations, it could be recognized not merely as aiding and abetting, but as a co-offender under the Punishment of Tax Offenses Act, as well as for breach of trust.”
When the amount of tax evaded exceeds ₩500 million KRW (about $345,000 USD) and the breach-of-trust amount also exceeds ₩500 million KRW (about $345,000 USD), enhanced punishment laws may apply. The likelihood of special statutes being applied in this case is high.
— Roh Jong Eon
Fantagio acknowledged the existence of Kim Seon Ho’s corporation but claimed, “The company had not been operating for over a year, and we have recognized the potential issues and are proceeding with closure.”
This corporation was previously created by Kim Seon Ho, without recognizing that it could pose a problem. It was established not for tax-saving purposes, but because he has been active in theater and intends to continue pursuing stage productions in the future.
— Fantagio
Read more:
ASTRO’s Cha Eunwoo Could Win His Tax Evasion Case But Still Lose Overall
Source: Sports Kyunghyang