Platforms Face 5 Million Won Fine for Brokering Lodgings Without Business Notification Certificates

Ministry of Health and Welfare Amends the Enforcement Decree of the Public Sanitation Management Act
Distributes Operational Guidelines to Local Governments and Platforms

Going forward, platforms that broker accommodation bookings online must check that the lodging businesses have filed the required business notifications. Platforms that broker accommodation listings whose notification status cannot be verified will face a fine of 5 million won.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on October 19 that a partial amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Public Sanitation Management Act, containing these provisions, had been promulgated and would take effect on November 12.

The amendment establishes criteria for imposing fines under a revision to the Public Sanitation Management Act, which introduced a new obligation for mail-order brokerage businesses and others to verify lodging business notification certificates and restrict brokerage of listings that have not been verified.

Until now, online accommodation booking platforms had not been separately required to check lodging business notification certificates. Going forward, however, they must verify the certificates when brokering accommodation bookings and may not broker listings for which verification is not possible.

The rules apply not only to online travel agencies (OTAs) that receive listings directly from lodging businesses and broker reservations, but also to platforms that obtain accommodation listings from other travel agencies or suppliers, display them on their own sites, and facilitate actual mail-order sales.

Accommodation listings registered before the law takes effect are not exempt. To continue brokering existing listings after the effective date, platforms must verify through lodging business notification certificates or other means that the businesses are operating legally. They must stop brokering listings whose notification status cannot be verified from the effective date.

Local governments may notify platforms of violations and request the removal of listings after identifying unregistered lodging businesses. They will then investigate the facts and impose fines if violations are confirmed. Platforms must also immediately remove listings when they discover unregistered lodging businesses.

Before the rules take effect, the Ministry of Health and Welfare will prepare and distribute operational guidelines on restricting mail-order brokerage of unregistered lodging businesses to help local governments, platform operators, and others apply the law consistently. Through the guidelines, the ministry plans to explain the scope of the law, brokers' obligations, procedures for imposing fines, and criteria for determining violations, thereby minimizing confusion in the field during the initial implementation period.

Kim Hansook, Director General of Health Policy at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said, "We will enhance trust in the online accommodation booking process so that the public can use lodging facilities with confidence," and added, "We also encourage users to check the business information of lodging facilities and use lodging businesses that have been properly registered."

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