Corporate division means to separate multiple business sectors into several corporations by individual business sector as means of corporate restructuring. In Korea, the corporate division system was introduced in the Commercial Act revised in 1998 an...
Corporate division means to separate multiple business sectors into several corporations by individual business sector as means of corporate restructuring. In Korea, the corporate division system was introduced in the Commercial Act revised in 1998 and accordingly for the tax system, provisions concerning the tax system and tax advantage was included in the Corporate Tax Act and the Tax Advantage Restriction Act. This study examined contents concerning corporate division and tax system of major advanced countries in terms of the comparative method in legal systems with theoretical consideration following corporate division. Next, this study examined the contents of the division tax system and tax advantage by corporate division party with regard to the tax system on the Corporate Tax Act following corporate division in Korea, and derived problems in the resulting division tax system and suggested the improvement methods. The improvement methods of problems in the current division tax system are summarized as follow:
Firstly, this study tries to suggest methods that corporate tax is not imposed against liquidation income as the liquidation income amounts of the divided corporation were not originally imposed by which all assets and debts of the divided corporation are succeeded to new divided corporations, etc at a book value for the corporate division satisfying eligible requirements of tax advantage to support corporate restructuring. Secondly, this study tries to suggest method to impose corporate tax against liquidation income amounting to income of every business year by considering liquidation income as transfer income due to a kind of capital transfer following division without separately imposing tax against liquidation income even though tax is imposed following corporate division. Thirdly, this study tries to suggest necessity of more clearly defining the scope of deficit carried over deducted from self-capital allowances, so that liquidation income will not be calculated in addition to division consideration unless liquidation income are unreasonably obtained without objective of tax evasion by normal management decision-making even though liquidation income are calculated in addition to division consideration as inclusive stocks that were obtained and held as part of division merger. Fourthly, this study tries to improve contradiction that tax income differ depending on the type of assets succeeded by appropriating only stocks and contribution equities as par value where eligible requirements of tax advantage are satisfied for liquidation incomes, asset transfer marginal profits and asset evaluation marginal profits, etc following corporate division, and specifying the tax deferment system that include them in loss of a money as temporary refunding allowances for lands and structures and appropriating all assets and debts that are partially succeeded as per book value. Fifthly, it will be more reasonable to reduce the period of business continuity as a year considering fairness with merger with regard to the tax advantage requirements of business continuity for more than 5 years for the divided corporation. Sixthly, it will be more reasonable to impose tax as dividend income when surplus are actually divided to stockholders for the division of stocks generated due to transfer of the surplus of the divided corporation to new divided corporations, etc in spite that there are no actual dividend income for stockholders of the divided corporation. Seventhly, succession and specific evaluation method of the goodwill as intangible assets of the divided corporation, and self-establishment goodwill are not clearly specified in the Commercial Act and the Tax Act but succession and specific evaluation method of goodwill must be particularly specified in the Tax Act to properly represent value evaluation on financial statement following division. Eighthly, this study tried to maintain fairness of tax income calculation between division corporations after the division registration date by clearly calculating net asset value of assets and debts by particularly specifying the scope and evaluation method of the succeeded assets and debts of the division corporation. Method to select and apply the reversion time where no reversion time of the succeeded assets, debts and losses & profits of the division corporation arrives and where the reversion time is different from the division corporation and a new division corporation. The division criteria must be particularly specified in the Tax Act. Ninethly, the behavior denial provisions must be particularly specified in the Tax Act where a corporation unreasonably evades the corporate tax using excuse of corporate restructuring by abusing the eligible requirements of tax advantage through corporate division. As shown above, more application of tax advantage will be required so that corporate restructuring will not be interrupted due to tax burden if corporate division is the part of corporate restructuring for management efficiency by which improvement methods against problems in the tax system following corporate division are legislatively complemented. In addition, general provisions including the Commercial Act, Tax Act and the corporate accounting criteria, etc in relation to corporate division must be harmonized so that corporate division will be further activated.