[Bills in Focus] Tech theft prevention, pay equity and chips tax break

Proposed bill: Partial Amendment to the Act on Prevention of Divulgence and Protection of Industrial Technology

Proposed by Rep. Song Eon-Seog (People Power Party)

● Under the current Criminal Act, brokers who arrange job transfers with the precondition of divulging industrial technology often go unpunished or receive lenient penalties. This amendment imposes civil liability on brokers to discourage them from participating in divulging or infringing industrial technology for economic interest. It holds them accountable for damages resulting from job transfers that intentionally or by gross negligence constitute a divulgence or infringement of industrial technology.

Proposed bill: Partial Amendment to the Depositor Protection Act

Proposed by Rep. Kang Byung-won (Democratic Party of Korea)

● A series of bank bankruptcies in the US has also increased the safety risks of the Korean financial system, prompting the reinforcement of depositor protection. Furthermore, the excessive pursuit of profit by banks through increasingly high net interest margins has aggravated the financial burden of the working class. This amendment grants the Korea Deposit Insurance Corp. the authority to increase the default deposit protection limit of 50 million won ($38,000) to the maximum limit of 200 million won with consideration of the loan-deposit margin of financial companies.

Pending bill: Partial Amendment to the Labor Standards Act

Proposed by Rep. Kim Hyung-dong (People Power Party)

● Demands for a wage system reform from a seniority-based pay structure to a performance-based pay structure have grown significantly in South Korea, based on the conception that every employee should be treated equally for the work of equal value regardless of age, gender and employment types. This follows the recent Supreme Court ruling against the wage peak system for its pay discrimination based on age. This amendment addresses this social demand by strengthening the equal treatment principle under the Labor Standards Act and by ensuring pay equity regardless of employment types such as regular workers or temporary workers.

Promulgated bill: Act on Restriction of Special Taxation

Competent Ministry: Ministry of Economy and Finance

● This act increases the tax credits for investments in facilities commercializing national strategic technologies, such as semiconductors, and introduces temporary tax credits for investments that strengthen the competitiveness of national strategic industries. Furthermore, it implements special taxation for high-yield, high-risk bond investment trusts, introduces separate special taxation on the interest income from national bonds held for private investment purposes, increases the income deduction rate for the amount spent by credit cards for mass transit, and adjusts the enforcement period of a tax deduction for hometown love donations.

Administrative Announcement: Partial Amendment to the Guidelines for Reporting the Establishment and Conversion of Holding Companies and Reporting on the Business Details of Holding Companies

Competent Ministry: Fair Trade Commission

● This amendment aims to enhance business convenience and predictability by providing the necessary forms for applying for an extension of the grace period for restriction on acts by holding companies. It also reflects inquiries regarding reporting obligations for the introduction of corporate venture capital by general holdings companies. Moreover, this amendment modifies the definition of “other relatives” and updates the relevant forms accordingly.

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The Korea Herald republishes a weekly legislative report by local law firm Dr & Aju to provide the latest information on bills approved, proposed, pending and set to be promulgated. -- Ed.

For any queries about the bills, contact cr@draju.com.