Taxes & Tax Returns

 Need TAX Return Help?

BLUF: On-base military personnel assistance is not available to retirees in Korea

Retirees can use one of many on-line tax companies such as Intuit TurboTax, FreeTaxUSA, TaxSlayer and others. Or, visit an H&R Block South Korea office where there are concession stands on base at USAG Humphries and Osan AB (Humphreys: Maude Hall One Stop or Osan: Mustang Mall (Exchange food court). These offices are managed by the H&R Block main office in Seoul and appointments are required.

Keep in mind if you maintain more than $10,000 in a Korean bank account you must declare it to the IRS during tax filing via a Foreign Bank Account Report (FBAR).

Taxable vs Nontaxable Incomes: It is often asked, primarily by the younger retirees, what type of payments are and are not taxable. While there a great many tax laws and loopholes and gotchas, in general these are the ones that impact many of us:

  • VA Compensation - Tax-free
  • Social Security - Taxable 
  • Military Retirement Pay from DFAS - Taxable 
  • Civilian Retiree Pay from OPM - Taxable

For those requiring H&R Block assistance, the two offices listed below are located on-base and can assist for in-person tax work. Clicking the https://www.hrblock.kr link can also direct you for help.

H&R Block Sites

H&R Block Osan AB

Website: https://www.hrblock.kr
Osan AB Base Exchange, Mustang Mall, Bldg. #965
Email: kenny.lee@hrblock.com
Phone: 070-7597-0132
Fax: 02-795-7554

H&R Block Expat Tax Services
Regardless of where you live, the H&R Block Korea tax advisors focus on expat tax preparation for Americans abroad.

H&R Block USAG Humphreys

H&R Block Humphreys

Website: https://www.hrblock.kr
USAG Humphreys, Maude Hall One-stop, Bldg. P6400
Email: sam.lee@hrblock.com
Phone: 070-7727-6100 (+82-70-7727-6100)
Fax: 02-795-7554 

H&R Block Expat Tax Services
Regardless of where you live, the H&R Block Korea tax advisors focus on expat tax preparation for Americans abroad.

Korea Taxable Incomes

U.S. military retirement income, VA Compensation, Social Security payments are all NOT taxable by Korea. However, if you keep more than $10,000 in a Korea bank, which is an overseas banking institution, it must be reported to the IRS via an IRS Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts Report (FBAR). Learn more at https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/report-of-foreign-bank-and-financial-accounts-fbar

US-ROK Tax Treaty

Here is the link to the IRS website that has a copy of the current US-ROK tax treaty stating was is and what is not taxable https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-trty/korea.pdf

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