As of October 2026, South Korea requires most residential leases in urban areas to be reported to the local government within 30 days of signing. The rule applies when the deposit is above KRW 60 million or the monthly rent is above KRW 300,000. A four-year grace period ended on May 31, 2025, and contracts signed on or after June 1, 2025 are now subject to administrative fines if the report is late or false. Late filing costs between KRW 20,000 and KRW 300,000 depending on the contract amount and the delay; a false report costs KRW 1 million. The good news for tenants: filing with your signed contract also gives you a fixed-date stamp (hwakjeong ilja) at the same time. This guide covers who must report, how the 30 days are counted, the fine schedule, how to file online or in person, and the exceptions that confuse both Korean and foreign residents.
Check whether your lease must be reported
The Housing Lease Reporting System, often called the jeonse and wolse reporting rule, applies only when three conditions are all met: location, amount and contract type.
Location. According to the Ministry of Government Legislation's Easy Law guide, the rule covers the entire Seoul capital area (Seoul, Gyeonggi and Incheon), metropolitan cities, Sejong, Jeju City and every si (city) inside a province. County-level areas (gun) in provinces other than Gyeonggi are excluded. So a studio in a provincial city is covered, while a house in a rural county usually is not.
Amount. The lease is reportable if the deposit exceeds KRW 60 million or the monthly rent exceeds KRW 300,000. Only one threshold needs to be crossed. A lease with a KRW 20 million deposit and KRW 400,000 monthly rent must be reported because of the rent. A deposit of exactly KRW 60 million, or rent of exactly KRW 300,000, does not exceed the threshold.
Contract type and housing. New leases signed on or after June 1, 2021 are covered, as are renewals where the deposit or rent changes. A renewal that only extends the term with no change in money, including automatic (tacit) renewal, does not need to be reported. The definition of housing is broad: apartments, multi-unit and detached houses, plus quasi-housing such as goshiwon rooms and dormitories, and residential space in buildings not registered as housing. The ministry says it judges each case by actual use, the purpose of the lease and the building's structure.
Nationality does not matter. If the landlord or tenant is a foreign national, the lease is reported with a passport or alien registration number like any other. The ministry's FAQ adds that a clearly temporary stay, such as a short business posting by someone who keeps a registered main residence elsewhere, is not treated as reportable.
How the 30-day deadline is counted
The clock starts on the contract date, not the move-in date or the date you pay the balance. If you sign in autumn for a spring move-in, the deadline can pass before you ever get the keys.
It can start even earlier. The ministry's answer quoted on Easy Law says that once the rent, term and property are agreed and a provisional deposit (ga-gyeyakgeum) has been transferred, the 30 days run from that transfer date, even before a formal contract is written.
Both landlord and tenant are legally obliged to report. In practice one party can file alone: if the submitted contract carries both parties' signatures or seals, it counts as a joint report. If the other side refuses to cooperate, you can still file alone by attaching a statement explaining why. Agree on the day you sign who will file so the deadline does not slip while each side assumes the other has done it.
Changes matter too. If the rent changes during the term of a reported lease, a change report is required, and if the lease is cancelled before the term begins, a cancellation report is required. Failing to file these is also covered by the fine provision.
How much the fine is if you report late
The statutory ceiling is KRW 1 million, but the actual amounts are set in an annex to the enforcement decree. Before the grace period ended, the ministry amended the decree on April 29, 2025 and cut the late-filing range from KRW 40,000–1 million to KRW 20,000–300,000, separating honest delays from deliberate false reports. A false report still costs KRW 1 million.
The late fine depends on the contract amount band and how long the report was overdue. The schedule below follows the table published by Jeonbuk State from Annex 3 of the decree.
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| Contract amount | Up to 3 months | Up to 6 months | Up to 1 year | Up to 2 years | Over 2 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under KRW 100M | 20,000 | 40,000 | 60,000 | 80,000 | 100,000 |
| KRW 100M–300M | 30,000 | 80,000 | 100,000 | 130,000 | 150,000 |
| KRW 300M–500M | 40,000 | 120,000 | 160,000 | 200,000 | 250,000 |
| KRW 500M or more | 50,000 | 150,000 | 200,000 | 250,000 | 300,000 |
All amounts are in Korean won. A lease under KRW 100 million that is up to three months late costs KRW 20,000; a lease of KRW 500 million or more left unreported for over two years costs KRW 300,000. If you realise you missed the deadline, filing immediately keeps you in the lowest band.
Timing also matters. Leases signed during the grace period (June 1, 2021 to May 31, 2025) are not fined even if you report them now. Fines are imposed by the local government.
How to file: online, in person or with your move-in report
There are three routes.
- Online: use the Real Estate Transaction Management System (rtms.molit.go.kr) on a PC, or on a phone or tablet using simple authentication.
- In person: visit the community service centre (haengjeong bokji center) for the district where the home is located. Bringing the contract signed by both parties lets it count as a joint report.
- Linked filings: if a tenant submits the lease contract while filing a move-in report (jeonip singo), the lease report is treated as filed. Leases signed through the government e-contract system, and reports made by registered public or private rental operators under their own laws, also count.
The report includes each party's name, address, resident or alien registration number and phone number; the property's address, type and leased area; the deposit and rent; and the contract date and term. For renewals it records whether the tenant exercised the statutory right to request renewal, and if an agent was involved, the brokerage details. If no written contract exists, bank transfer records showing the lease payments can serve as proof.
The biggest practical benefit for tenants is the fixed-date stamp. When the report is filed with the contract, a fixed date is deemed granted and its number appears in the top-right corner of the lease report certificate, so no separate application is needed. The reverse is not true: if you obtained a fixed date at a court or registry office first, you still have to file the lease report separately. The ministry sends KakaoTalk reminders to people who obtained only a fixed date.
Common edge cases and a post-signing checklist
- Will the report be used to tax my landlord's rental income? In its April 2025 announcement the ministry said the system exists to track the rental market and protect tenants, and that under current law the data is not used for taxation. Show this to a hesitant landlord.
- We renewed with a higher rent. A renewal with changed amounts is reportable within 30 days if the new figures exceed a threshold.
- The deal fell through before move-in. A reported lease cancelled before its term begins needs a cancellation report; your new lease is reported separately.
- My landlord is a company. Corporations report too, using the company name, office address and corporate registration number.
On the day you sign: (1) confirm location, amount and renewal status; (2) write down a 30-day deadline from the earlier of the provisional deposit transfer and the contract date; (3) agree who files; (4) file online or at the community centre with the contract attached; and (5) check that the certificate shows a fixed-date number. The lease reporting call centre is 1533-2949 (Korean service). The reporting rate reached 95.8% in 2024, so this is a routine step—done on time, it costs nothing and secures your fixed date in the same visit.