Attorney No Jong-eon | Ilgan Sports 「No Jong-eon Entertainment Court」 Column

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The essence of the 20 billion won tax surcharge — it lies not in the amount, but in the 'legal theory'

The controversy over a tax surcharge in the 20 billion won range surrounding actor Cha Eun-woo has shaken the entertainment industry. The public was stunned by the astronomical figure, but Attorney No Jong-eon points out that the essence of this case lies not in the numbers, but in the reality behind the so-called 'eel restaurant agency' and the application of the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes (the Special Crimes Act).

This matter is not a simple underpayment of taxes. The estimated unpaid principal tax is in the 13 billion to 14 billion won range, meeting the Special Crimes Act threshold (more than 1 billion won per year), and the issue is that the corporate address under his mother's name was an eel restaurant in Ganghwa County, Incheon. The tax authority views this as intentional tax evasion using a sham paper company with no real substance.

What is more frightening than imprisonment is the 'fine'

If the Special Crimes Act is upheld, the statutory punishment is either life imprisonment or imprisonment for at least five years, and a fine of up to 25 times the evaded tax is mandatorily imposed in addition. Attorney No Jong-eon emphasizes this point in particular. Even if the court, taking into account remorse and full payment of the surtax, sentences the defendant to a suspended term, the fine must still be imposed separately from imprisonment. Since the minimum is twice the evaded tax, fines in the hundreds of billions of won could be added on top of the National Tax Service’s surtax assessment. The financial burden could exceed the criminal punishment.

"My mother managed it, so I didn't know" — no longer works

Attorney No Jong-eon reads the Cha Eun-woo case as a warning bell for the entertainment industry's haphazard family-run management. This case exposed how the National Tax Service's monitoring network is accurately functioning against longstanding practices such as appointing family members as executives, paying them fictitious salaries, and enjoying private benefits through company-owned vehicles.

Artists must recognize themselves not merely as creators but as a single 'enterprise'. Entrusting finances to family without a professional system and transparent accounting can no longer serve as a shield, either in court or in the public eye. Detail is risk, and proactively managing risk is the condition for a sustainable career.

「No Jong-eon Entertainment Court」 is regularly serialized in Ilgan Sports. Attorney No Jong-eon of Jonjae Law Firm draws on field experience handling major entertainment industry disputes, including the cases of Goo Hara, Park Soo-hong, Omega X, and Sunwoo Eun-sook, to provide in-depth insights into entertainment law issues.