Government legislation ministry says water rights transfers need no public notice

The Ministry of Government Legislation said that administrative agencies do not need to issue public notices when rights and obligations from shared water occupancy permits are transferred or inherited.

The ruling came in response to a query from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries regarding whether such transfers require public disclosure under the Act on the Management and Reclamation of Shared Waters.

Under current regulations, agencies must publicly announce details when granting initial occupancy permits or approving changes to usage periods and purposes. However, the law only mandates a reporting procedure for the transfer or inheritance of these rights.

The ministry explained that transferring rights does not alter the substantive conditions of the water usage, such as the location, area, or duration of the occupancy, but merely succeeds the legal status of the original permit holder. The law requires comprehensive reviews of environmental impact and national security primarily when granting permits, while distinguishing between modification permits, change reports, and rights transfers regarding public notice requirements.

While some arguments suggested that a change in the permit holder's name should trigger a notice because the enforcement decree lists the holder's name as a disclosure item, the ministry rejected this view. It stated that the primary purpose of public notices is to inform third parties of changes to the physical state of the water body, and a change in ownership does not directly affect the occupancy status. Furthermore, changes to corporate names or representatives are handled through separate reporting mechanisms without mandatory public notices.