Park Dae-chul, “Are parents who gift their children 300 million won when they get married the super-rich?”

People Power Party’s chief of policy, Park Dae-chul speaks in a public-private meeting including the ruling PPP on measures to prevent the illegal distribution of K-content at the National Assembly on July 31. Yonhap News

On July 31, Park Dae-chul, head of the policy committee in the People Power Party (PPP), asked, “Are the families of the bride and groom who each give their children up to 150 million won when they get married the super-rich?” He was contradicting Democratic Party of Korea leader Lee Jae-myung, who criticized the government’s tax reforms claiming they were tax cuts for the super-rich. The tax reforms would allow tax deductions for gifts of property up to 300 million won (including gifts from both the groom and bride’s families) to couples getting married. Park accused the Democratic Party leader of trying to divide newlyweds.

Monday, Park Dae-chul wrote on his social media account, “The Democratic Party leader Lee described the amendment of the tax law as tax cuts for the privileged super-rich,” and criticized the opposition party’s views.

He argued, “Supporting the dreams of young men and women newly stepping out into the future, placing stepping-stones so they can design their future more deliberately, and helping newlyweds build their property are not something that should be interpreted in terms of ‘rich and poor,’” and opposed Lee’s criticism. He argued, “Encouraging marriage to resolve the serious problem of low fertility is not a ‘privilege.’ It’s rather an ‘obligation’ that the state has to young newlyweds,” and added that privilege wasn’t something that Lee Jae-myung, who rejected an arrest motion, should mention.

Earlier, in a meeting of the Democratic Party’s Supreme Council on Monday, Lee Jae-myung spoke on the government’s plan to increase tax deductions for property gifted to children when they get married and said, “People are complaining, ‘Not another tax cut for the super-rich!’” Lee expressed his opposition and said, “People are not avoiding marriage because they can’t receive gifts. The people who will benefit (from the amendment) are extremely few, and it will only give many young people a sense of deprivation and isolation.”

The government finalized its plan for the 2023 tax reforms in a meeting on the nation’s tax system on July 27. The latest reforms included tax exemptions for up to 300 million won of property gifted to newlyweds from their parents.