Gyeongnam Province Restricts New Real Estate Acquisitions Related to Job Duties for Public Officials and Public Institution Employees

Gyeongsangnam-do Provincial Government.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Sang-hyun] All public officials in the Gyeongnam Province departments responsible for real estate tasks such as urban development are restricted from newly acquiring real estate related to their duties.

Gyeongnam Province announced on the 5th that it has established the "Guidelines on Restricting New Real Estate Acquisition by Public Officials Affiliated with Gyeongsangnam-do," which have been in effect since December 31 of last year.

These guidelines were prepared in response to the amendment of the Public Officials Ethics Act implemented in October last year, aiming to prevent issues where public officials and employees of public institutions acquire real estate using information related to their duties.

Gyeongnam Province defined the departments and scope of real estate subject to new acquisition restrictions and limited public officials responsible for real estate tasks from newly acquiring real estate related to their duties.

However, in certain cases such as inheritance or acquisition of real estate for actual residence, even if related to duties, new acquisition is exceptionally allowed upon reporting to the head of the institution or submitting explanatory materials. In such cases, the acquisition must be reported within 30 days.

If the case does not fall under the exceptions, the official may be required to sell the real estate within 30 days, and disciplinary or other personnel actions may be taken if real estate is acquired without reporting.

Additionally, investigations into speculation using internal information may be conducted through methods such as reviewing property declarations or conducting comprehensive real estate surveys.

The province finalized these guidelines after deliberation by the Gyeongsangnam-do Public Officials Ethics Committee, informed public officials within the institution, and requested active cooperation. Prior to the implementation of the guidelines, 20 real estate-related departments, including the Urban Planning Division, were designated to require all employees within those departments to submit property declarations detailing the acquisition process and sources of income related to real estate.

A Gyeongnam Province official stated, “We will strive to prevent cases of unfair gains through internal information and foster a culture of integrity.”

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