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Can my spouse and children living overseas be claimed as dependents for year-end tax settlement?
  • Application Date 2026-10-30 15:13
  • Consultant Hannah
I am a foreign researcher working at a research institute in Korea, while my family is currently living in my home country. My spouse currently has no income, and we have one young child. I send money to my family every month for their living expenses. Can I claim my spouse and child as dependents for my year-end tax settlement in Korea even though they do not live with me in Korea? I also regularly send money to my parents living in my home country. Can I claim my parents as dependents as well?
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Comments 1
Hannah Consultant

(Date Posted) 2026.10.30

Foreign employees are not necessarily prohibited from claiming a basic deduction simply because their family members live outside Korea. If you are treated as a resident for Korean tax purposes, your spouse, lineal ascendants, and lineal descendants living overseas may be eligible for a basic deduction if the applicable family relationship, income, age, and dependency requirements are satisfied. There is no age requirement for a spouse, but the applicable income requirement must be met. You should also prepare documents issued in your home country that verify the marriage or family relationship, together with documents showing the spouse’s income status. Children and parents are subject to their respective age and income requirements. In particular, when claiming a deduction for parents living overseas, it is important not only to establish the family relationship but also to provide evidence that you are actually supporting them financially, such as records of overseas remittances. If you are classified as a non-resident for Korean tax purposes, the scope of available deductions may be significantly more limited. Therefore, before determining whether overseas family members qualify for deductions, you should first confirm whether you are considered a resident or non-resident for Korean tax purposes. In practice, the appropriate order of review is: your Korean tax residency status → the relationship, age, and income requirements for each family member → evidence of actual financial support and other supporting documents.
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