South Korea to launch art business registration system Sunday

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said Sunday's launch of a mandatory registration system for art service businesses follows the Cabinet's approval of an enforcement decree under the Art Promotion Act on Tuesday.

Established under Article 18 of the Art Promotion Act, the art service business registration system is designed to systematically foster and support the art retail sector while promoting a transparent and fair art market.

Under the new system, anyone seeking to operate a gallery, art auction house, art advisory firm, art rental and sales business, art appraisal service or art exhibition business must register with the head of the relevant local government.

Art service businesses will also be required to comply with a set of mandatory obligations, including maintaining records of art distribution, disclosing hammer prices and using standardized appraisal forms. Galleries, auction houses, advisory firms, and rental and sales businesses must keep distribution records and provide information required for the payment of resale royalties. Auction houses face additional obligations: disclosing hammer prices and whether auction proceeds have been paid in full, ensuring fair auction operations, and publicly disclosing when works belonging to the operator or their relatives are put up for sale. Appraisal businesses must conduct assessments fairly, refrain from issuing false appraisal certificates, avoid sole appraisals of works owned by themselves or their relatives, issue certificates using forms designated by the ministry, accept no compensation beyond appraisal fees and actual expenses, and neither offer nor receive money or other financial benefits in exchange for securing appraisal contracts.

Businesses that operate without registering or that violate the mandatory obligations will be subject to fines or suspension of operations.

However, as the registration system is newly introduced, the ministry will run a one-year grace period through July 25, 2027, to ease the transition and help the system take root. During this period, fines and business suspension orders will be deferred, and the ministry plans to work with relevant agencies to actively guide businesses through registration procedures and key compliance points.

The ministry has spent three years preparing for the system's implementation — including gathering expert opinion — since the Art Promotion Act was enacted in 2023.

Jung Hyang-mi, director general of the ministry's Culture and Arts Policy Bureau, said the registration system "will serve as a foundation for building consumer trust in the art market and helping the Korean art market grow to the next level." She added that the ministry plans to "actively develop tailored policies and support projects suited to the characteristics of each business type, drawing on data collected through the registration system."