Five-Day Suspension for Restaurants After Just One Price Gouging Violation

Five-Day Suspension for First Violation
Ten-Day Suspension for Second Offense

Going forward, restaurants that fail to display a price list or charge customers more than the posted price will face business suspension after just one violation. The government has decided to increase the level of penalties in order to curb so-called “rip-off pricing” that frequently occurs during peak seasons such as holidays or regional festivals.

A view of Myeongdong Street in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced on September 1 that it would amend and promulgate the Enforcement Rules of the Food Sanitation Act to include these changes.

Under the revised regulations, food service businesses that do not post a price list or charge more than the displayed price will receive a five-day business suspension for the first violation. If a second violation occurs, the suspension increases to 10 days; for a third violation, the suspension period rises to 20 days.

Previously, businesses caught for the first time failing to display a price list or overcharging were merely ordered to correct the issue. On a second violation, a seven-day suspension was imposed, and a third violation led to a 15-day suspension. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety determined that current sanctions alone could not sufficiently protect consumers—especially during busy seasons and large-scale events, when complaints over excessive pricing at some establishments continue to occur. This new measure is a follow-up to the government's anti-rip-off pricing strategy announced in February.

The Ministry also decided to simplify some administrative procedures for food business operators. Previously, when business owners needed to make changes to their business permit, registration, or reporting details, they had to submit the original permit, registration, or reporting certificates. Now, submission of the originals will no longer be required.

The obligation to keep business registration and permit certificates on-site will also be eliminated. Currently, those operating instant food manufacturing and processing, food parcel sales, food transport, or food service businesses are required to keep the relevant certificates at the business location, and violations incur fines. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has decided to remove these requirements, since civil servants can now confirm business registration status via an electronic system.

Benefits for “Food Safety Certified Facilities”—businesses recognized for superior hygiene—will be strengthened. If such a facility receives an administrative sanction, the penalty for the first violation can be reduced. In addition, the exemption period from on-site inspections and sample collections will be extended from the current two years to three years.

The range of foods that instant food manufacturing and processing businesses can portion and sell will be expanded to include fish meat products, vinegar, and starch. Facility standard exemptions, previously applied to domestic agricultural product producer associations, will be extended to include seafood producer associations as well.

Various fee standards have also been revised. The temporary business notification fee for operating in another location will be lowered from 28,000 won to 9,300 won. Meanwhile, the new application fee for approval of temporary food ingredients will increase from 100,000 won to 3 million won, and the fee for genetically modified food safety review will rise from 5 million won to 8.5 million won.

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