SMEs ministry eases penalties for market redevelopment operators

The change, part of a partial revision to the Special Act on the Promotion of Traditional Markets and Shopping Districts, applies to violations committed before the law takes effect as well as to later ones.

The revision replaces the automatic penalty with a two-step process. Mayors, county governors and district office heads may first order a violator to correct the failure to register a large retail store, and a criminal penalty applies only if the operator then ignores that order. The same rule binds the administrative mayor of Jeju under the special self-governing province law.

The ministry also added local government finances to the list of factors weighed when prioritizing support for modernization work at commercial facilities. Under the amended Article 20, parking lots, rain covers and other safety installations at commercial infrastructure will be considered for priority funding alongside the financial condition of the local government carrying out the project, rather than safety inspection results alone.

The correction-order requirement applies from Sept. 29, the day the law was published, while the change to the support criteria takes effect six months later.

The revision covers market redevelopment projects led by merchant organizations and similar groups, in which operators must register a large retail store within six months of completing the work. The new correction-order rule changes how that deadline is enforced rather than the deadline itself.

Under the amended Article 72, a person who violates an order issued under the new provision faces the penalty, replacing the previous wording that covered anyone who simply failed to register.