Extension of Lease Reporting System Grace Period Until May Next Year... Reduction of Penalties

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 18th that the guidance period for the housing lease reporting system, which is set to end next month, will be extended for one more year until May 31 of next year. The maximum fine of 1 million won will also be reduced to 200,000 won.

An information notice about the Jeonwolse registration system is posted at the Yongsan District Office in Seoul. / Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

The housing lease reporting system, one of the three lease laws, aims to protect tenants' rights by transparently providing actual transaction information. It requires landlords and tenants to report the contract details to local governments within 30 days if the deposit exceeds 60 million won or the monthly rent exceeds 300,000 won. Failure to report within the period or false reporting results in a fine of up to 1 million won.

The system has been in effect since June 1, 2021. However, considering the public burden and administrative conditions, the government set a two-year guidance period during which fines were not imposed. When the guidance period was about to expire last year, the Yoon Seok-yeol administration extended it by one year due to a series of jeonse frauds and reverse jeonse problems.

This additional extension is a measure to create conditions for voluntary reporting before imposing fines and to ease the level of fines. The Ministry of Land explained that there have been cases where lease reporting was omitted due to confusion with the application for a fixed date, so they decided to have an additional guidance period and strengthen publicity.

However, regardless of the decision to postpone the imposition of fines, the obligation to report within 30 days from the contract date remains. The Ministry emphasized that if the contract is submitted when reporting the lease, a fixed date is automatically assigned without a fee, so active reporting is necessary.

The Ministry also plans to pursue legal amendments to lower the level of fines, considering the characteristics of lease transactions where transactions are frequent and many tenants belong to vulnerable housing groups. It is known that they are reviewing a reduction from the current 40,000 to 1 million won range to 20,000 to 200,000 won.

Starting in July, a mobile service will be provided to allow landlords and tenants to easily report immediately upon concluding a lease contract. Lease contract reporting can be done at the resident center with jurisdiction over the housing location or on the real estate transaction reporting website.

Kim Heon-jeong, Director of Housing Policy at the Ministry of Land, said, "So far, the reporting system has contributed to protecting tenants' rights, such as automatic assignment of fixed dates, and has positive functions like reducing information asymmetry between landlords and tenants, so it needs to be further developed. Through the extension of the guidance period and the easing of fines, we will reduce the public burden, improve reporting convenience, and increase public acceptance of the housing lease reporting system."