관세법상 실질과세원칙의 적용 범위와 한계 - 사례를 중심으로 -

Abstract

The precedents of the Supreme Court are affirmative about the application of the actual taxation principle under Customs Law, but there are no substantive enactments regarding the principle in Customs Law unlike internal taxes containing such enactments. Recently, the Supreme Court made a ruling that reorganized taxable values by applying the actual taxation principle to the prices of imported goods as a tax base for taxation. The ruling has stirred controversy, facing an objection that it breaks away from the old application criteria of the actual taxation principle. This study thus aims to review the application scopes and limitations of the actual taxation principle under Customs Law based on precedents of the Supreme Court. The study reached the following conclusions: First, precedents of the Supreme Court recognize the application scope of the actual taxation principle under Customs Law very broadly. Second, Customs Law contains no substantive enactments related to the actual taxation principle unlike Internal Taxes Law containing general substantive enactments, which means that the application scope of the principle varies. Third, Internal Taxes Law can exercise the authority of taxation for valid acts for tax evasion without a business purpose or economic reason by denying their forms, but it is difficult to have such an interpretation under Customs Law. Finally, there should be legislation to reorganize a trade or do a teleological interpretation by applying the actual taxation principle under Customs Law.