Korea has officially promulgated amendments to the Game Industry Promotion Act, confirming a new compliance timeline for overseas game publishers subject to the country's Domestic Agent requirements.
The amended law, promulgated on October 20, 2026, as Act No. 22085, will take effect on April 21, 2027.
Following the National Assembly's approval on October 1, the official promulgation provides greater certainty about when the strengthened requirements will become applicable.
For overseas game publishers, the focus now shifts from understanding the legislative changes to preparing for their implementation.
Korea's mandatory Domestic Agent system has been in effect since October 23, 2025, requiring qualifying overseas game publishers to appoint a representative in Korea.
The latest amendments strengthen this framework by expanding Domestic Agent responsibilities, introducing appointment priorities, and increasing publishers' oversight obligations.
With the law now officially promulgated, affected publishers have a defined preparation period before the new provisions take effect.
Importantly, the amendments do not mean that every overseas game publisher must appoint a Domestic Agent. The designation obligation continues to depend on the applicable statutory and regulatory criteria.
The amendments introduce several important changes:
Domestic Agents will assume additional responsibilities relating to Korean user protection and complaint handling, alongside existing regulatory and probability-based item disclosure functions.
Publishers with qualifying Korean subsidiaries or affiliated entities must appoint a Domestic Agent in accordance with the statutory priority rules.
Where the relevant Korean entities are unavailable, other eligible entities may be appointed under the applicable requirements.
Publishers must educate, manage, and supervise their appointed Domestic Agents to ensure that required duties are properly performed.
They must also maintain the required designation throughout the period in which their games are distributed or made available in Korea, subject to applicable procedures for changes.
Korean authorities will have additional powers to request information relevant to compliance and Domestic Agent designation eligibility.
The amendments also strengthen corrective-order procedures and penalties for certain violations.
One of the most important provisions for publishers already operating in Korea concerns existing Domestic Agent appointments.
Under the amended law's transitional provisions, publishers that have already appointed a Domestic Agent may be required to make a new appointment if they have a Korean entity that falls within the revised priority rules.
Where this transitional requirement applies, the publisher must designate the qualifying Korean entity within six months after the amended law takes effect.
This means that some publishers may need to review their existing representative arrangements even if they are currently compliant with the Domestic Agent requirements.
However, the transitional requirement does not automatically require every overseas publisher to replace its existing Domestic Agent.
Publishers subject to Korea's Domestic Agent requirements should use the preparation period to review three key areas.
Publishers should also monitor relevant implementing regulations and regulatory guidance as the effective date approaches.
The October 20 promulgation marks the completion of the legislative process for Korea's strengthened Domestic Agent framework.
With implementation scheduled for April 21, 2027, overseas game publishers now have a clear timeline to assess their obligations and prepare for compliance.
For affected publishers, the priority is no longer simply appointing a Domestic Agent, but ensuring that the appointment and its ongoing operation satisfy the amended legal requirements.
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