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Coverage

Flight disruption

Republic of Korea — Consumer Dispute Resolution Standards (KFTC), air transport

NationalKRDerived or secondary source

Republic of Korea

Rule id
air.kr-cdrs
Version
1.0.0
In force from
January 1, 2007
Last read against its sources
August 5, 2026
Countries bound
South Korea

In plain language

What this regime says.

Korea does not have a compensation statute, and it does have real published figures. The Consumer Dispute Resolution Standards, issued by the Fair Trade Commission, pay 10, 20 or 30 per cent of the fare by delay band, and USD 200 to 600 on an international flight that does not operate. Korean carriers follow them because the Korea Consumer Agency applies them.

Who is covered

Korean consumers in disputes with air carriers, including foreign carriers operating to and from Korea.

What you get

Domestic delay: 10% of the fare at 1–2 hours, 20% at 2–3, 30% beyond 3. International delay: 10% of the sector fare at 2–4 hours, 20% at 4–12, 30% beyond 12. International flight that does not operate: USD 200 or 400 where the scheduled flight time was 4 hours or less, USD 300 or 600 where it was longer, depending on whether the replacement came within 4 hours — and a refund plus USD 600 where no replacement was offered at all. Domestic failure to carry: 20% or 30% of the fare.

Where claims go wrong

  • Being told the Standards are "not law". They are the criteria the Korea Consumer Agency applies, which is what matters.
  • Accepting mileage. The Standards state cash and percentages.
  • Not naming the instrument. A letter citing 소비자분쟁해결기준 gets a different answer from one asking for goodwill.
  • Overlooking that the international failure figures are per passenger and in US dollars, not percentages.
  • Forgetting the Montreal Convention claim on an international flight, which is not capped by the Standards.
The official claim route

Authority

Every citation,
with its pinpoint.

A claim that cites “EU law” gets filed. A claim that cites Article 7(1)(c) gets answered. These are the exact coordinates this entry rests on.
  1. 소비자분쟁해결기준 (공정거래위원회 고시), 별표 II — 항공업Consumer Dispute Resolution Standards, a public notification of the Korea Fair Trade Commission issued under Art. 16(2) of the Framework Act on Consumers and Arts. 8 and 9 of its Enforcement Decree, Annex II, item on the air transport industryURL verified 2026-08-05별표 II, 항공업 (domestic and international passenger carriage)
  2. 소비자기본법 제16조제2항 (Framework Act on Consumers, Art. 16(2))소비자기본법 (Framework Act on Consumers, Act No. 7988 of 27 September 2006, as amended) — Art. 16(2) empowers the Fair Trade Commission to prescribe standards for the resolution of consumer disputesURL verified 2026-08-05제16조제2항
  3. 항공사업법 (Aviation Business Act)항공사업법 (Aviation Business Act, Act No. 14116 of 2016, as amended)URL verified 2026-08-05

Sources

Where a figure is indexed, converted or published by a regulator rather than fixed in the instrument, the provenance is recorded separately. Anything marked as a modelled estimate is exactly that — a model, not a statutory number.

What it imposes

Clocks, defences and the ladder.

A rule module builds these while it evaluates, because a limitation period depends on which forum is open to you. What follows is the structure this regime produces — deliberately with no dates and no figures, because those belong to your facts rather than to the law.

The clocks it starts

  • Two years for a Montreal Convention claim (Art. 35)Korea has been a party to the Montreal Convention since 29 December 2007. On international carriage the Art. 19 claim for proven delay loss runs alongside the Standards and is not limited by them — the Standards figure is a floor for mediation, not a ceiling on your loss.Montreal Convention 1999, Art. 35(1) — Art. 35(1)Limitation period

What it entitles you to, beyond money

  • Montreal Convention damages for delay (international carriage)On international carriage between States Parties, Art. 19 of the Montreal Convention makes the carrier liable for the damage the delay actually caused you — the unused hotel night, the missed onward booking, the extra meals and transport — unless it proves it took all measures that could reasonably be required. It is capped at 6,303 SDR per passenger (the figure ICAO set with effect from 28 December 2024) and it requires receipts, not a formula. This claim exists independently of any national scheme, and airlines never mention it. The right is extinguished two years after arrival under Art. 35.Art. 19, Art. 22(1)

What the other side will say

Each of these is a refusal this regime lets a counterparty attempt, paired with the answer to it. Reading them before you write is worth more than any amount of polish on the letter itself.

"The Standards are not law"

high likelihood

The carrier points out that the Consumer Dispute Resolution Standards are a notification rather than a statute and says it is not bound to pay.

What answers it

Strictly true and practically weak. The Standards are the criteria the Korea Consumer Agency and the Consumer Dispute Settlement Commission apply, and under the Framework Act they are the default where the parties have not agreed something else. Ask the carrier what standard it says applies instead and why it is more appropriate than the one the Fair Trade Commission published. Then file with the Korea Consumer Agency, where the published standard is the starting point.

소비자기본법 제16조제2항 (Framework Act on Consumers, Art. 16(2)) — 제16조제2항

"It was an unforeseen maintenance issue affecting safety"

high likelihood

The carrier invokes the safety-maintenance carve-out, which is the most-used exemption in Korean practice.

What answers it

The carve-out is for an unforeseen requirement affecting safety, not for maintenance generally. Ask what the defect was, when it was discovered, and why it was not found at the previous scheduled check. A part that was known to be near end of life, or a deferral that ran out, is not unforeseen. The carrier has to establish this, not assert it.

소비자분쟁해결기준 (공정거래위원회 고시), 별표 II — 항공업 — 별표 II, 항공업 (domestic and international passenger carriage)

Miles or a voucher instead of the figure

high likelihood

The carrier offers mileage or a travel voucher, often nominally worth more than the standard figure.

What answers it

The Standards state percentages of the fare and dollar amounts, not mileage. You may accept miles if you want them, and you are not obliged to. Say so plainly and ask for the cash figure under 소비자분쟁해결기준. Carriers reserve mileage offers for passengers who do not know the standard exists.

소비자분쟁해결기준 (공정거래위원회 고시), 별표 II — 항공업 — 별표 II, 항공업 (domestic and international passenger carriage)

Where to take it next

  1. Written claim to the airlineClaim in writing to the carrier and cite 소비자분쟁해결기준 (별표 II, 항공업) by name, with the flight, the delay band or the replacement timing, and the figure that follows. Korean carriers have a specific team for standards-based claims and they respond differently to a letter that names the instrument.Claim directtypically 30 days
  2. 한국소비자원 (Korea Consumer Agency) — consumer counselling and mediationThe Korea Consumer Agency runs the 1372 consumer counselling line and mediates disputes with airlines, applying the Consumer Dispute Resolution Standards as the default. It is free, it is quick by the standards of these things, and it is the body that makes the Standards bite.Regulatortypically 90 daysofficial page
  3. 소비자분쟁조정위원회 (Consumer Dispute Settlement Commission)Where counselling and mediation do not resolve it, the Commission adjudicates. Its decision, if both sides accept it, has the effect of a court settlement.Regulatortypically 90 daysofficial page
  4. 소액사건심판 (small claims procedure)Binding on themKorea runs a simplified procedure for claims up to KRW 30 million, with a single hearing and no requirement for a lawyer. Realistic for a sector-fare percentage or a USD 600 figure.Small claimstypically 180 days

Documents

What this regime can produce.

Every one of these is a document you send yourself, in your own name. Duesday never writes to anybody on your behalf and is never anyone’s agent.

The same claim type elsewhere

Belarus — Air Code of the Republic of Belarus and the Department of AviationBYNational — BelarusВоздушный кодекс Республики БеларусьConfidence: lowEU Regulation 261/2004 (air passenger rights)EUSupranational — 31 countriesRegulation (EC) No 261/2004Confidence: highGermany — contractual damages beyond the Article 7 sum (BGB)DENational — GermanyRegulation (EC) No 261/2004, Art. 12(1)Confidence: mediumItaly — ruined-holiday damages (danno da vacanza rovinata)ITNational — ItalyRegulation (EC) No 261/2004, Art. 12(1)Confidence: lowMoldova — air passenger rights under the EU–Moldova Common Aviation Area AgreementMDNational — MoldovaEU–Moldova Common Aviation Area Agreement, Annex IIIConfidence: mediumRussian Federation — Air Code Art. 120 (carrier liability for delay)RUNational — RussiaВоздушный кодекс Российской Федерации, ст. 120 (Ответственность перевозчика за просрочку доставки пассажира, багажа или груза)Confidence: highSpain — further damages beyond the Article 7 sumESNational — SpainRegulation (EC) No 261/2004, Art. 12(1)Confidence: lowTürkiye — SHY-YOLCU air passenger rights regulationTRNational — TürkiyeSHY-YOLCU, Kapsam (scope)Confidence: medium

Other rights in the same countries

Korea — securities class actions and injunction-only consumer group litigationKRNational — South KoreaSecurities-Related Class Action ActConfidence: lowRepublic of Korea — KORAIL delay compensation under its passenger transport terms (여객운송약관)KRNational — South KoreaKORAIL 여객운송약관 (Passenger Transport Terms and Conditions), made under the Railroad Service ActConfidence: lowRepublic of Korea — Korea PostKRNational — South Korea우편법 (Postal Service Act) of the Republic of KoreaConfidence: lowSouth Korea — Act on Consumer Protection in Electronic CommerceKRNational — South Korea전자상거래 등에서의 소비자보호에 관한 법률 (Act on the Consumer Protection in Electronic Commerce)Confidence: mediumSouth Korea — Specialized Credit Finance Business Act right to refuse instalment paymentKRNational — South Korea여신전문금융업법 (Specialized Credit Finance Business Act), Art. 16-2Confidence: mediumSouth Korea Personal Information Protection ActKRNational — South KoreaPersonal Information Protection Act (Act No. 10465), Arts. 35–37, 39Confidence: lowSouth Korea — rental deposit (주택임대차보호법 (Housing Lease Protection Act))KRNational — South Korea주택임대차보호법 (Housing Lease Protection Act)Confidence: low

Does this one reach your facts?

The engine runs every regime that could apply at once and reconciles them, rather than making you guess which page to read.

Run your factsBack to the catalogue

Not a law firm. Not legal advice. You send it yourself. This page describes a law; it is not advice about your situation and no outcome is promised.