Hong Nam-ki "Reviewing Duty-Free Allowance for Non-Stop Overseas Sightseeing Flights"

Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister for Economy, attended the plenary session of the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts held at the National Assembly on the 9th, responding to questions from lawmakers. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon] Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, said on the 9th that “there is a lot of consideration toward allowing duty-free sales” regarding the ‘non-landing overseas sightseeing flights’ that have gained popularity due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

On the same day, at the National Assembly’s Budget and Accounts Committee, when Jeong Il-young, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, asked about duty-free support measures for non-landing flight tourists, Deputy Prime Minister Hong replied, “We are reviewing it in a relatively positive direction by synthesizing the reviews from the Ministry of Justice and the Korea Customs Service.”

Non-landing sightseeing flights are a product recently introduced by the aviation industry, where an airplane flies for a certain period without a specific destination and then returns. If the aircraft passes through the airspace of another country, it is considered an international flight, so the product aims to allow the purchase of duty-free goods to help the duty-free industry, which is struggling due to COVID-19.

Kim Hyun-mi, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, explained, “If the flight goes through another country’s airspace, it is considered an international flight, and I understand other countries do the same.”

Deputy Prime Minister Hong added, “Japan, which is implementing non-landing sightseeing flights, currently does not allow duty-free sales, and Taiwan is awaiting a response. It is also necessary to consider overseas cases and public sentiment.”

Meanwhile, when Representative Jeong proposed that “the aviation industry is struggling due to COVID-19, so the establishment of an aviation cooperative and initial government budget support of about 45 billion won are needed,” Deputy Prime Minister Hong responded, “I fully agree on the necessity of establishing the cooperative, but financial support should be approached cautiously.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.