Ji Chang Wook’s agency has issued a formal statement regarding the results of his recent tax audit.
On May 2, Field News reported that Ji Chang Wook had been subjected to an irregular tax audit by the National Tax Service this past March. According to the report, the actor was ordered to pay billions of won (millions of dollars) as a result of the audit.
That same day, Ji Chang Wook’s agency Spring Company responded by releasing the following statement:
Hello. This is Spring Company.
We are making an official statement regarding the report about our actor Ji Chang Wook’s tax audit.
First, we sincerely apologize for giving many people cause for concern through this incident. However, we would like to clearly state that there was absolutely no intentional omission of income or tax evasion through dishonest means.
During the recently conducted tax audit, our company transparently submitted all relevant materials and diligently cooperated with the investigation. However, we found that there was a difference in opinion with the tax authorities on the interpretation and application of tax laws regarding whether the earnings from the actor’s activities in the entertainment industry should be attributed to the individual or the corporation under the principle of taxation based on economic substance.
Despite this difference in opinion, we respect the findings of the National Tax Service’s audit, as [Ji Chang Wook] has strictly adhered to all tax-related laws and procedures without any issues and has always considered the diligent fulfillment of his tax obligations a top priority ever since his debut in 2008. Therefore, we plan to pay the imposed penalty tax without delay, in accordance with the relevant procedures.
In order to prevent a similar incident from occurring in the future, we will review our tax and accounting management systems even more closely, and we will continue to diligently fulfill our tax obligations while upholding the law and related principles.