Ministry of Land Launches AI-Based Diagnostic Service Development for Land Development Permitting

Permitting Process Expected to Be Reduced by 30%

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on June 5 that it will hold a joint kick-off briefing session for the “AI-Based Integrated Preliminary Permitting Diagnosis Service Development Project,” which was selected as part of the “Top 10 AI Public Service Projects for Livelihood Improvement” promoted under the pan-government Public AX initiative.

The Public AX project is a government initiative to drive innovation in public services, mainstream AI in citizens' daily lives, and promote a comprehensive AI transformation (AX) in the public sector. As part of this, the government is rapidly introducing AI-based public services in areas with high public impact through the Top 10 AI Public Service Projects for Livelihood Improvement.

Currently, land development activities such as farmland and forest land conversion and building permits require approvals under approximately 200 different laws and local government ordinances. For building permits, 23 separate regulatory items must be approved, while factory establishment may require up to 36. The ministry aims to resolve these complex permitting procedures and reduce the processing period, which currently takes between 2 and 12 months.

First, through the AI-Based Integrated Preliminary Permitting Diagnosis Service, the ministry plans to establish a system that uses AI to analyze and diagnose land information as well as various permitting laws and administrative procedures. This will allow anyone to check in advance whether land development activities are eligible for permits and to review major processes.

The service will be implemented by combining spatial information based on Digital Twin Land with AI technology. The AI agent will comprehensively analyze the zoning, building coverage ratio, floor area ratio, development restrictions, and other relevant legal and regulatory standards for the target land, as well as the applicant’s intent, and then provide guidance on the required permitting procedures and review items.

According to the pilot plan, the project will begin with four local governments this December and expand to ten by June next year. In the second half of the same year, the service will be extended to all local governments nationwide, including support for civil servants and a mobile app for the general public. In particular, when land use changes due to local government urban management plan announcements, the system will automatically update this information. During the pilot phase, the project will actively incorporate residents’ development requests.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport expects that the introduction of this service will significantly improve convenience for civil petitioners. In particular, the period required to request a preliminary review for permitting eligibility will be greatly reduced, and the time needed to prepare and process civil petitions and permits is expected to decrease by more than 30%. As a result, the ministry anticipates saving approximately 7.5 billion won in processing costs annually.

Lee Daeseob, Director of Land Information Policy at the ministry, stated, "We plan to support citizens so they can more easily and quickly access permitting information by utilizing AI technology," adding, "Going forward, we will continue to expand citizen-centric AI services in diverse areas such as Digital Twin Land and DX·AX innovation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.