Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon's 'Deregulation' Extends to Rental Agencies... Ddareungi Bikes Now Accessible to Children Too

Market Lease Contracts with 10% Cash and 90% Guarantee Insurance
Subway Mall Rent Late Fee Rate Reduced to 6%

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon’s initiative to 'abolish regulations' from the first day of the new year has expanded to include investment and foundation institutions under the city. A total of 23 institutions are leading regulatory reforms to improve citizens' daily convenience, including abolishing the age restriction for using Ddareungi, which was set at 13 years and older.

On the 13th at 2 p.m., Seoul held the 'Regulation Abolition Report Meeting for City-Affiliated Investment and Foundation Institutions.' At this meeting, a total of 159 regulatory abolition proposals were presented across all projects of these institutions, covering ▲livelihood and economy ▲housing and facilities ▲culture and tourism ▲health and welfare sectors.

Earlier, since last month, the city had identified and abolished 22 regulations in fields such as construction and small business with the participation of city employees. Until April 12, the city is also collecting regulations that cause inconvenience through the 'Regulation Reform Newspaper' platform.

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At the report meeting, many measures in the livelihood and economy sector aimed to support economic actors struggling due to the economic downturn. The Seoul Agricultural and Marine Products Corporation will ease the burden of rental deposits for small business tenants in Garak and Gangseo markets by allowing contracts with only 10% of the deposit in cash, with the remaining 90% replaced by guarantee insurance. The Seoul Credit Guarantee Foundation has made it possible to provide new guarantee support even if there is an outstanding guarantee balance with other city or provincial credit guarantee foundations.

In the housing and facilities sector, the abolition of regulations on Seoul Facilities Corporation’s popular bike-sharing service, Ddareungi, stood out. Previously, children under 13 were not allowed to use it, but now children under 13 can ride Ddareungi if accompanied by a guardian. Additionally, a 3-hour usage ticket will be added alongside the existing 1- and 2-hour tickets.

Seoul Transportation Corporation will reduce the late payment interest rate on rent for subway shopping mall tenants from the current 9-10% to around 6%. When multiple shopping mall lease contracts are signed collectively, partial contract termination will also be permitted.

In the culture and tourism sector, the Seoul Design Foundation reduced the number of documents required at contract submission from nine to one. In the health and welfare sector, the Seoul Welfare Foundation will establish a compensation system for damages caused by forced door openings when socially isolated households lose contact. Previously, compensation was not paid if the individual was at fault, but from this year, the welfare foundation will cover the costs and reclaim them from the responsible party.

Among the tasks discovered by the investment and foundation institutions, regulatory abolition proposals selected after review by the 'Regulation Abolition Expert Review Committee' will be implemented following the revision of related regulations.

Following the release of the first regulatory abolition proposal last month, which relaxed the ratio of non-residential uses in residential complex buildings, Seoul is actively removing unnecessary regulations across various sectors. The day before, the city announced the lifting of land transaction permit zones in Jamsil, Samsung, Daechi, and Cheongdam. At the 'Big Debate on Regulation Relief to Revive Livelihood' held on the 14th of last month, where opinions from 100 citizens were gathered, citizens requested the abolition of these regulations. Mayor Oh stated, "We are actively considering lifting the land transaction permit system, which was chosen during an exceptional period." As Mayor Oh continues his strong push for 'regulation abolition' from his New Year’s address, some interpret this as a move with a view toward a future presidential bid.

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