Samsung Owner's Family Completes Record Inheritance Tax Payment

Seoul. The owner's family of South Korean multinational company Samsung has completed the process of paying inheritance tax equivalent to approximately 12 trillion won (about 8 billion dollars). This is the largest tax payment in the history of South Korea. 

This tax is related to the property of the group's late chairman Lee Kun-hee. Lee passed away in October 2020. He left behind property including shares, real estate, and art collections worth approximately 26 trillion won.

His son and current chairman Lee Jae-yong, along with his mother Hong Ra-hee, and sisters Lee Boo-jin and Lee Seo-hyun, have paid this tax in 6 installments over a period of five years.

The company confirmed on Sunday that the final installment was paid, stating that this amount is about one and a half times the total inheritance tax revenue collected by South Korea in 2024.

The family said in a statement that paying taxes is a natural duty of citizens. Samsung is South Korea's largest business conglomerate.

Its business spans electronics, construction, heavy industry, and financial services. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, the Lee family's total wealth is over 445 billion dollars.

The family's wealth has more than doubled in the past year as Samsung Electronics' share price surged with the increased demand for chips for the artificial intelligence (AI) industry worldwide. 

Samsung is one of the world's largest smartphone manufacturers and TV producers. It is also a leading company in the production of advanced semiconductors (chips).