FRAMEWORK ACT ON KOREAN LANGUAGE

Article 1(Purpose) #

The purpose of this Decree is to provide for matters mandated by the Framework Act on Korean Language and matters necessary for the enforcement thereof.

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 2(Details of fact-finding survey) #

(1) The fact-finding survey conducted pursuant to Article 9 of the Framework Act on Korean Language (hereinafter referred to as the "Act") shall cover the following matters:

1. Matters concerning the national language ability of citizens, such as listening, speaking, reading, and writing capabilities;

2. Matters related to citizens' awareness of the Korean language, such as awareness of using honorifics, foreign words, foreign languages, standard languages, and regional languages;

3. The following matters regarding the environment of using Korean language:

(a) Current status of people's listening, speaking, reading and writing skills;

(b) Current status of people's use of honorifics, foreign words, foreign languages, standard words, and regional languages;

(d) Current status of language use in songs, movies, advertisements, company names, and trademarks.

(2) When the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism conducts a fact-finding survey pursuant to paragraph (1), he or she shall announce the results, and reflect the results of the fact-finding survey in establishing a basic plan for the development of the Korean language (hereinafter referred to as the "basic plan") pursuant to Article 6 of the Act.

(3) The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism may require a specialized institution or organization related to the Korean language to perform part of the fact-finding survey under paragraph (1).

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 3(Designation and duties of Korean language officer) #

(1) The head of a public institution, etc. under subparagraph 5 of Article 3 of the Act (hereinafter referred to as "public institutions, etc.") shall designate any of the following persons as a Korean language officer in accordance with Article 10 (1) of the Act: <Amended on Dec. 14, 2021>

1. The head of a department of public relations or a department in charge of the Korean language at the relevant public institutions, etc.;

2. A public official or employee in a position equivalent to subparagraph 1.

(2) The duties of the Korean language officer are as follows: <Amended on Dec. 14, 2021>

1. Development and dissemination of easy-to-understand terms and encouragement of use of accurate sentences to effectively publicize policies or business affairs of the relevant public institutions, etc.;

2. Formulation and promotion of policy measures to improve the environment of using the Korean language by people subject to the policies or business affairs of the relevant public institutions, etc.;

3. Establishment and promotion of policy measures to improve the Korean language skills of people working at relevant public institutions, etc.;

4. Deleted. <Dec. 14, 2021>

(3) The heads of central administrative agencies, the Special Metropolitan City Mayors, Special Self-Governing City Mayors, Metropolitan City Mayors, Do Governors, and Special Self-Governing Province Governors (hereinafter referred to as "Mayors/Do Governors") shall notify the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism; and the head of a Si/Gun/Gu (referring to the head of an autonomous Gu; hereinafter the same shall apply) shall notify the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism through the competent Mayor/Do Governor, of the performance of duties for the development and preservation of the Korean language conducted by the Korean language officer belonging to the relevant agency and the results of self-evaluation thereon once a year. <Amended on Dec. 14, 2021>

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 4(Impact assessment of language norms) #

(1) The impact assessment on the language norms under Article 12 (2) of the Act shall cover the following matters:

1. The impact of the language norms on people's use of the Korean language:

(a) Public awareness of the necessity and importance of language norms, etc.;

(b) Degree of change caused by the language norms in people's use of Korean language;

2. Reality and rationality of the language norms:

(a) Public awareness and acceptance of the language norms;

(b) People's satisfaction with the language norms.

(2) When selecting the subjects of the impact assessment on language norms, the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall ensure that region, age, gender, occupation and educational background, etc. are distributed in a balanced manner.

(3) When the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism intends to enact or amend the language norms, he or she shall conduct an impact assessment on the language norms in advance.

(4) The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism may have academic organizations, public opinion polling institutions, or universities under Article 2 of the Higher Education Act (hereinafter referred to as "universities") perform part of the impact assessment on language norms.

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 5(Term of office of Korean Language Deliberation Council members) #

(1) The term of office of the members of the Korean Language Deliberation Council (hereinafter referred to as the "Korean Language Deliberation Council") under Article 13 (1) of the Act shall be 2 years. <Amended on Sep. 19, 2017>

(2) Members of the Korean Language Deliberation Council shall be appointed or commissioned by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism from among those who fall under any of the following subparagraphs, taking gender into account: <Added on Sep. 19, 2017>

1. Public officials belonging to the Korean language-related department of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism;

2. Head of an institution or organization related to Korean language, language, Korean language education, or the field of Korean language education as a foreign language, etc.;

3. A person who has obtained a doctoral degree in the field of Korean linguistics, linguistics, Korean language education, or Korean language education as a foreign language and then has conducted research or has practical experience in the same field for at least 3 years;

4. Persons with abundant expertise and experience in the fields related to the Korean language, such as the press, broadcasting, publishing, and informatization.

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

[Title Amended on Sep. 19, 2017]

Article 5-2(Dismissal of Korean Language Deliberation Council members) #

If a member of the Korean Language Deliberation Council falls under any of the following subparagraphs, the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism may dismiss the relevant member:

1. Where the member becomes incapable of performing his or her duties due to a physical or mental disorder;

2. When the member engages in misconduct in connection with his or her duties;

3. Where he or she is deemed unfit to serve as a committee member due to neglect of duties, loss of dignity, or any other reason;

4. Where he or she personally expresses his or her intent that fulfilling duties is difficult.

[This Article Added on Nov. 30, 2015]

Article 6(Meeting of Korean Language Deliberation Council) #

(1) The Korean Language Deliberation Council shall be convened when the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism or the chairperson of the Korean Language Deliberation Council deems it necessary, and a majority of the members of the Council shall constitute a quorum, and any resolution thereof shall require the concurring vote of at least a majority of those present.

(2) Matters necessary for the operation of the Korean Language Deliberation Council under paragraph (1) shall be determined by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 7(Request for cooperation from related organizations) #

If the Korean Language Deliberation Council deems it necessary for performing its duties, it may request cooperation from related agencies, organizations, or experts in the relevant field, such as submission of data or opinions, or attendance at meetings.

Article 8(Subcommittees) #

(1) The types and deliberative matters of the subcommittees pursuant to Article 13 (5) of the Act are as follows:

1. Language Policy Subcommittee:

(a) Matters related to the basic plan;

(b) Matters related to improving people's Korean language skills and improving the environment of using the Korean language;

(d) Matters related to informatization of the Korean language;

(e) Other matters not under the jurisdiction of other Subcommittees;

2. Language Norms Subcommittee:

(a) Matters related to the spelling of Hangeul;

(b) Matters pertaining to the standard language regulations and the standard pronunciation methods;

(d) Matters concerning the method of writing the Korean language in foreign characters, such as the Romanization system;

(e) Matters related to the shape, reading, and meaning of Chinese characters;

(f) Matters related to impact assessment on the language norms;

3. Korean Language Purification Subcommittee:

(a) Matters related to Korean language purification;

(b) Matters pertaining to the standardization of terminology in specialized fields.

(2) The Subcommittee under each subparagraph of paragraph (1) shall be composed of at least 15 but not more than 30 members, including 1 chairperson.

(3) In principle, the members of the Korean Language Deliberation Council shall serve as the members of 1 Subcommittee, but if necessary, they may become the members of 2 or more Subcommittees.

(4) The chairperson of a Subcommittee shall be elected from among the members of the Subcommittee.

(5) A meeting of a subcommittee shall be convened when the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism or the chairperson of the subcommittee deems it necessary, and a majority of the members of the Council shall constitute a quorum, and any resolution thereof shall require the concurring vote of at least a majority of those present.

Article 9(Executive secretary and clerk) #

(1) The Korean Language Deliberation Council and each Subcommittee shall have 1 executive secretary and 1 clerk.

(2) The executive secretary and clerk shall be appointed by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism from among public officials belonging to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 10(Allowances) #

Allowances and travel expenses may be paid to the members and related experts who attend the Korean Language Deliberation Council and the Subcommittees within the budget.

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 11(Preparation of official documents and use of Hangeul) #

When preparing official documents, etc. pursuant to the proviso of Article 14 (1) of the Act, the cases where Chinese characters or foreign characters may be written in parentheses are as follows: <Amended on Dec. 14, 2021>

1. If it is necessary to accurately convey the meaning;

2. In cases of using difficult or unfamiliar jargon or new words.

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

[Title Amended on Dec. 14, 2021]

Article 11-2(Evaluation of official documents) #

Before conducting an evaluation pursuant to Article 14 (2) of the Act, the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall formulate an evaluation plan including the evaluation methods, evaluation schedule, etc. and notify it to the public institutions subject to the evaluation.

[This Article Added on Dec. 14, 2021]

Article 12(Composition and operation of Standardization Council) #

(1) The Terminology Standardization Council (hereinafter referred to as the "Standardization Council") established in the central administrative agency pursuant to Article 17 (2) of the Act shall be comprised of at least 5 but not more than 20 members, including 1 chairperson.

(2) The chairman of the Standardization Council shall be the Korean language officer of the relevant central administrative agency, and the members shall be appointed or commissioned by the head of the relevant central administrative agency from among the following persons, taking into account gender:

1. A public official belonging to the terminology-related department of the relevant central administrative agency;

2. A person with extensive professional knowledge and experience in fields related to the Korean language and technical terminology.

(3) The Standardization Council shall deliberate on the following matters:

1. Matters related to the purification and standardization of technical terminology in the relevant field;

2. Matters related to the purification and standardization of technical terminology requested for deliberation in the private sector, such as academic organizations and social organizations in the relevant field;

3. Other matters necessary for the purification and standardization of technical terminology.

(4) Except as otherwise provided for in paragraphs (1) through (3), matters necessary for the composition and operation of the Standardization Council shall be determined by the head of the relevant central administrative agency.

[Title Amended on Sep. 19, 2017]

Article 12-2(Procedures for standardization and systemization of technical terminology) #

(1) If the head of a central administrative agency wishes to standardize the technical terminology in the field under his or her jurisdiction, he or she shall go through deliberation by the Standardization Council and request deliberation from the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism. In this case, a request for deliberation in attached Form 1 shall be submitted, attached with the following documents:

1. A list of requests for deliberation on the draft standardization of technical terminology in attached Form 2;

2. Documents related to deliberation on the draft standardization of technical terminology in the relevant field;

3. Documents related to the deliberation on the draft standardization of technical terminology requested by the private sector, such as academic associations and social organizations in the relevant field.

(2) The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall confirm the draft standardization of technical terminology requested for deliberation pursuant to paragraph (1) through deliberation by the Korean Language Deliberation Council and then reply to the head of the relevant central administrative agency with the results, and the head of the relevant central administrative agency shall publicly notify the same.

(3) The head of a central administrative agency shall actively utilize the technical terminology confirmed and publicly notified pursuant to paragraph (2) for the enactment and amendment of relevant statutes and regulations under jurisdiction, production of textbooks, preparation of official documents, etc., and for the preparation of examination questions administered by the State. <Amended on Dec. 14, 2021>

(4) The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism may request the heads of central administrative agencies to submit data necessary for the standardization and systematization of technical terminology, such as the operational performance of the Standardization Council.

[This Article Added on Sep. 19, 2017]

Article 13(Qualification of Korean language teachers) #

(1) Pursuant to Article 19 (3) of the Act, the qualifications of a person who teaches the Korean language to overseas Koreans or foreigners (hereinafter referred to as "Korean language teacher") are as follows: <Amended on Apr. 15, 2025>

1. Korean Language Teacher Grade 1:

A person who has acquired a second grade qualification as a Korean language teacher falling under any of the subparagraph 2 and has worked in an institution or organization under paragraph (2) for at least 5 years and has taught Korean as a foreign language for a total of 2,000 hours or more (hereinafter referred to as "Korean language teaching experience");

2. Korean Language Teacher Grade 2:

(a) A person who has earned a bachelor's degree or higher after earning the required credits for each field specified in Appendix 1 with a major or double major in the field of Korean language education as a foreign language. In this case, a person with foreign nationality must have passed the examination publicly notified by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism by determining the type of examination, validity period and grade of the examination, etc.;

(b) A person who entered a university before July 28, 2005 and majored or double majored in the field of Korean language education as a foreign language, who has earned at least 18 credits by adding up subjects in the field specified in subparagraph 3 of Appendix 1 and subjects in the field specified in subparagraph 5 of the same Appendix, yet earned a bachelor's degree after completing at least 2 credits of subjects in the field specified in the subparagraph 3 of the same Appendix;

(c) A person who entered a graduate school under Article 29 of the Higher Education Act (hereinafter referred to as "graduate school") before July 28, 2005 and majored in the field of Korean language education as a foreign language, and earned a total of 8 credits or more by aggregating credits in subjects in the fields specified in subparagraph 3 of Appendix 1 and subparagraph 5 of the same Appendix, yet acquired a master's degree or higher after completing at least 2 credits of subjects in the field specified in subparagraph 3 of the same table;

(d) A person who falls under any of subparagraphs 3 (a) and (c) through (e) and has worked for at least 3 years at an institution or organization pursuant to paragraph (2) after obtaining a grade 3 certification of a Korean language teacher, who has a total of at least 1,200 hours‘ experience of Korean language education;

Article 13-2(Confirmation of curriculum and subjects of universities) #

(1) The universities or graduate schools that operate or plan to operate a degree program in the field of Korean language education and the institutions that operate or plan to operate a Korean language teacher training course (hereinafter referred to as "universities, etc.") may apply to the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism for confirmation of whether subjects by field, required credits, and required completion hours specified in Appendix 1 are appropriate.

(2) When the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism receives an application for confirmation pursuant to paragraph (1) from a university, etc., he or she shall verify whether the application is appropriate. In this case, the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism may disclose the results of verification with the consent of the university, etc. confirmed to have appropriate subjects, etc. for the curriculum.

(3) Details regarding the verification procedures, etc. under paragraph (1) shall be determined by Decree of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 14(Administration of Korean Language Education Proficiency Test) #

(1) The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall conduct the Korean Language Education Proficiency Test at least once a year to improve the quality of Korean language education as a foreign language.

(2) When the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism administers the Korean Language Education Proficiency Test pursuant to paragraph (1) (hereinafter referred to as the "Korean Language Education Proficiency Test"), he or she shall publicly announce the date, time and location of the Korean Language Education Proficiency Test 90 days prior to the test date.

(3) The sections and testing methods of the Korean Language Education Proficiency Test are as listed in Appendix 2.

(4) Those who pass the Korean Language Education Proficiency Test shall score at least 40% in each section and 60% of the total score in all sections in the written test and pass the interview test.

(5) The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism may require relevant professional institutions or organizations that meet the following requirements to perform tasks related to the preparation, administration, scoring and management of the Korean Language Education Proficiency Test:

1. It shall be a non-profit corporation;

2. It shall be equipped with manpower and facilities to conduct the Korean Language Education Proficiency Test;

3. It shall have expertise in the Korean Language Education Proficiency Test.

(6) For a person who has taken the test by fraudulent means or who has committed an unlawful act during the test, the relevant test shall be suspended or invalidated, and the person shall be disqualified from taking the examination for 3 years from the date of such dispositions.

(7) Those who pass the written exam shall be exempted from the written exam only for the next exam in the year in which they passed the written exam.

(8) A person who intends to take the Korean language education proficiency test shall pay fees for examination determined by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

(9) The test fees, refund, and other matters necessary for the operation of the Korean Language Proficiency Test shall be prescribed and publicly notified by the Minister of Culture, Sports, and Tourism.

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 14-2(Composition of King Sejong Institute Policy Council) #

(1) The King Sejong Institute Policy Council pursuant to Article 19-2 (6) of the Act (hereinafter referred to as the "Council") shall be composed of up to 12 members, including 1 chairperson.

(2) The chairperson of the Council (hereinafter referred to as "chairman") shall be the First Vice Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and the members shall be the following persons: <Amended on Mar. 23, 2013; Dec. 23, 2014>

1. International cooperation officer of the Ministry of Education, director-general for public diplomacy and cultural affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and cultural policy officer of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism;

2. A person commissioned by the chairperson from among the executive officers and employees of Korean language education-related organizations in consideration of gender;

3. Deleted. <Dec. 23, 2014>

(3) The term of office of the commissioned members under paragraph (2) 2 shall be 2 years. <Amended on Dec. 23, 2014>

(4) In order to handle the Council affairs, the Council shall have 1 executive secretary, and the executive secretary shall be the Director of the Korean Language Policy Division of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

[This Article Added on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 14-3(Operation of Council) #

(1) The chairperson shall select the agenda for the meeting, convene the meeting, and preside over the meeting.

(2) If deemed necessary, the chairperson may invite relevant experts to attend to hear their opinions or request them to submit opinions. <Added on Dec. 23, 2014>

(3) Except as otherwise provided for in paragraphs (1) and (2), matters necessary for the operation of the Council shall be determined by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism. <Amended on Dec. 23, 2014>

[This Article Added on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 14-4(Profitable business of King Sejong Institute Foundation) #

When the King Sejong Institute Foundation under Article 19-2 (1) of the Act conducts a profit-making business pursuant to Article 19-2 (8) of the Act, it shall submit a profit-making business plan in advance to the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism and obtain approval for each project. The same shall also apply when modifying an approved profitable business.

[This Article Added on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 15(Commemorative events of Hangeul Day) #

(1) The government may recognize individuals or organizations that have made significant contributions to the development of Hangeul and Korean language as Hangeul Development Contributors and award them when commemorating Hangeul Day pursuant to Article 20 (1) of the Act, and award the Sejong Culture Award to individuals or organizations that have made outstanding contributions to the development of Korean culture.

(2) Awards to the Hangeul Development Contributors under paragraph (1) shall be in accordance with the Awards and Decorations Act, and the Sejong Cultural Award shall be given in accordance with the Government Award Regulations, and the field of award, number of awardees, and other necessary matters shall be determined by the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism. <Amended on Jan. 16, 2013>

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 16 #

Deleted. <Oct. 20, 2008>

Article 17 #

Deleted. <Oct. 20, 2008>

Article 18(Method of testing Korean language proficiency) #

(1) The test of Korean language proficiency pursuant to Article 23 (1) of the Act shall be conducted in all of the following fields:

1. Listening;

2. Speaking;

3. Reading;

4. Writing;

5. Other matters necessary for using the Korean language.

(2) If the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism deems it necessary, he or she may require a specialized institution or organization that meets the following requirements to perform tasks related to the preparation, implementation, scoring and management of the Korean Language Proficiency Test:

1. It shall be a non-profit corporation;

2. It shall be equipped with manpower and facilities to conduct the Korean language proficiency test;

3. It shall give expertise in the Korean Language Proficiency Test.

(3) When the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism or the institution or organization that performs the Korean language proficiency test pursuant to paragraph (2) conducts the Korean language proficiency test, it shall notify the test taker of the results of the test or make it available for the test taker to view.

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 19(Designation of Korean Language and Culture Center) #

(1) An institution seeking to be designated as a Korean Language and Culture Center pursuant to Article 24 (1) of the Act shall meet all of the following requirements:

1. To have counseling professionals who meet the following requirements:

(a) One full-time person in charge: A person who has completed a doctoral program or obtained a doctoral degree in a field such as Korean language and literature, Korean language education, or linguistics, or who has at least 8 years of experience of lecture, research, consulting, or work in the Korean language- related department at a university and its affiliated research institute or counseling center, or in a Korean language-related organization or academic society;

(b) 2 or more full-time counselors: A person shall have earned a master's degree in a field such as Korean language and literature, Korean language education, or linguistics, or have at least 6 years of experience of lecture, research, consultation, or work at a university's Korean language-related department and its affiliated research institute or counseling center, or at a Korean language-related organization or academic society;

2. It shall be equipped with a consultation room, administrative office, and facilities for consultation using communication equipment.

(2) An institution that intends to be designated as a Korean Language and Cultural Center shall submit the Korean Language and Cultural Center a designation application in the attached Form 4 to the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, along with an operation plan for the Korean Language and Cultural Center: <Amended on Sep. 19, 2017; Jan. 5, 2021>

1. Deleted; <Jan. 5, 2021>

2. Deleted. <Jan. 5, 2021>

(3) Institutions designated as a Korean Language and Culture Center shall notify the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the business performance of the previous year by January 31 of each year. <Amended on Sep. 19, 2017>

[This Article Wholly Amended on Aug. 22, 2012]

Article 20(Processing of personally identifiable information) #

If it is inevitable for the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism (including professional institutions or organizations that carry out tasks related to the preparation, implementation, scoring and management of the Korean Language Education Proficiency Test pursuant to Article 14 (5)) to perform the following tasks, he or she may process data containing the resident registration numbers, passport numbers, or alien registration numbers pursuant to subparagraphs 1, 2, and 4 of Article 19 of the Enforcement Decree of the Personal Information Protection Act: <Amended on Apr. 15, 2025>

1. Tasks related to granting the Korean language teacher qualifications pursuant to Article 19 (3) of the Act and Article 13 of this Decree;

2. Tasks related to the Korean Language Education Proficiency Test under Article 14.

[This Article Added on Jul. 16, 2014]

Article 21 #

Deleted. <Dec. 24, 2018>