President Lee: "Why Reduce Fines? Economic Criminal Penalties Must Be Scrutinized Carefully"

Government Outlines Direction for Rationalizing Economic Criminal Penalties

Lee: "Fines Should Be Increased for Financial Crimes Due to High Profits"

On April 14, President Lee Jae-myung called for a balanced overhaul of economic criminal penalties, stating, "If penalties are to be imposed in the form of fines, then it is only right that the fine amounts be substantial."

President Lee gave these instructions after receiving a report from the Ministry of Economy and Finance on the "Third Plan to Rationalize Economic Criminal Penalties" at the Cabinet Meeting and Emergency Economic Inspection Meeting held at the Blue House on this day.

President Lee Jae-myung is speaking at the Cabinet Meeting and Emergency Economic Inspection Meeting held at the Blue House on April 14, 2026. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

The report included a proposal to adjust the level of sanctions imposed on telecommunications business operators who unfairly discriminate against customers or restrict contract terminations. The current penalty of "a fine of 300 million won plus a surcharge (3% of sales or 1 billion won)" would be revised to "a fine of 150 million won plus a surcharge (10% of sales or 5 billion won)."

President Lee questioned this proposal, saying, "Why reduce the fine from 300 million won to 150 million won? If you are going to abolish the punishment and replace it with a surcharge, or simply add a surcharge, that's one thing. But why reduce a fine that can go up to 300 million won? That seems odd."

He further explained, "For financial crimes and similar offenses, the illegal gains are significant, so it is appropriate to raise the fines. These are different from crimes affecting everyday citizens." His comments reflect the view that, rather than uniformly lowering sentences in the name of rationalization, penalties should be reasonably adjusted according to the severity of the crime and the relevant legal framework.

Another issue raised was the proposal to lower sanctions against public rental housing managers for failing to prepare or retain documents related to the collection and use of management fees. The current penalty of "one year of imprisonment or a fine of 10 million won" would be reduced to an administrative fine of 10 million won.

President Lee emphasized, "There are cases where housing managers unjustly collect money from residents and misuse it, then destroy the records. This is truly malicious behavior, and in such cases, the sentence should be increased or the administrative fine should be set in the hundreds of millions of won so that management companies face serious consequences."

He continued, "If the administrative fine is only 10 million won, wouldn't everyone just violate the rule? Would that have any deterrent effect? I hope that (the revision) will be made with concrete justification in mind."

Additionally, he noted, "If things proceed in this way, it will only make people think they can get away with it next time. When reviewing each provision, experts or trained professionals should be engaged to make thorough comparisons. It should not be done in a haphazard manner. It feels careless."

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