Table of Contents
- Three Categories of Location Data Business
- Personal Location Information Business — Registration
- Object Location Information Business — Notification
- Location-Based Service Business — Notification
- Small Business and One-Person Creative Enterprise Exemption
- Change, Transfer, Suspension and Closure Filings
- Penalties for Operating Without Clearance
- FAQ
1. Three Categories of Location Data Business
Any business that handles location data in Korea falls into one of three categories under the Act on the Protection and Use of Location Information (위치정보의 보호 및 이용 등에 관한 법률, "Location Information Act"): a personal location information business (registration), an object location information business (notification), or a location-based service (LBS) business (notification). The requirements, the processing route and the penalty levels differ sharply between them, so your first task is to decide which one applies to you.
Two questions settle it. First, do you collect location data and supply it to other operators (location information business), or do you provide a service to end users using location data (LBS business)? Second, is the data personal location information or not? Article 2 of the Act defines a location information business as "a business of collecting location information and providing it to a person running a location-based service business," and an LBS business as "a business of providing services using location information."
As of 2026, the three categories compare as follows. All three are supervised by the Broadcasting, Media and Communications Commission (방송미디어통신위원회).
| Category | Scope | Procedure | Entity requirement | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal location information business | Collects and supplies personal location information | Registration (reviewed) | Corporation only | Art. 5 |
| Object location information business | Collects and supplies non-personal location information only | Notification (accepted) | No restriction | Art. 5-2 |
| Location-based service business | Provides services using personal location information | Notification (accepted) | No restriction | Art. 9 |
There is one important carve-out: an LBS business that does not deal with personal location information is excluded from the notification requirement (Article 9(1), parenthetical). If your service uses only the location of objects, no LBS notification duty arises at all. This is the point most often misread in practice, so confirm first whether the data you collect or use can identify a specific individual.
2. Personal Location Information Business — Registration
If you collect personal location information and supply it to LBS operators, you must register with the Broadcasting, Media and Communications Commission. Two features set this apart from the other two categories: it is a reviewed registration rather than a simple notification, and only a corporation may apply. A sole proprietor cannot enter this market without incorporating first.
Article 5(1) sets out four requirements:
- Be a corporation — sole proprietors are not eligible
- Physical facilities — equipment adequate to achieve the business purpose
- Technical and managerial measures — safeguards protecting personal location information and the rights of data subjects
- No disqualification — none of the grounds in Article 5(1)4 apply
The application states the trade name, the address of the principal office, the type and content of the business, and the main business equipment including the location information system. Attachments are a business plan containing the items listed in Annex 1 of the Enforcement Decree, plus a shareholder register if the applicant is a corporation yet to be established. The corporate registry certificate is verified through administrative information sharing, so you do not submit it.
The Commission must notify the applicant of its decision within two months of receiving the application, extendable once by up to two months where unavoidable. Time spent supplementing documents is not counted toward those two months, so repeated supplementation requests stretch the real timeline considerably. In practice, the quality of the business plan determines the speed of the review.
Once approved, a registration certificate is issued and the register records the registration number and date, trade name and representative, the type and content of the business, the principal office address, capital or asset valuation, the content and installation site of main equipment, and any registration conditions. The Commission may attach conditions to the registration for research and development on accuracy, reliability or the protection of personal location information — and failure to comply with those conditions is itself a ground for cancelling the registration or ordering closure of the business.
3. Object Location Information Business — Notification
A location information business that does not deal with personal location information — an object location information business — is handled by notification rather than registration. Fleet telematics, logistics asset tracking and IoT device positioning typically sit here. There is no corporation requirement, so a sole proprietor may file.
The notification covers the trade name, the principal office address, the type and content of the business, and the main business equipment including the location information system. The attachments are:
| No. | Document | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Object location information business notification form | Electronic filing accepted |
| 2 | Business plan covering operator profile and business content | |
| 3 | Document confirming the content and installation site of main equipment | |
| 4 | Document evidencing location information protection measures | Technical and managerial measures under Art. 16 |
One bar applies: a person who received an order to close the business under Article 13(1) less than one year ago — including the representative of a corporation — cannot file this notification. Setting up a new company does not help if the representative is the same, so check the elapsed period before filing if there is any enforcement history.
Conversely, if you attach the documents required for an object location information business notification when applying for personal location information business registration, the notification is deemed to have been made. Operators handling both personal and object location data can therefore bundle the two procedures.
4. Location-Based Service Business — Notification
A business that uses collected location data to deliver a service to end users must file an LBS business notification. Delivery apps, ride hailing, maps and navigation, nearby-store search and safe-arrival services all fall here. Crucially, the duty applies even if you never measure a position yourself and simply consume location data from a carrier or a map provider.
The notification covers the trade name, the principal office address, the type of business, and the main equipment including the location information system. Attachments mirror the object location information notification: a business plan, a document confirming main equipment, and evidence of the protection measures required by Article 16. The corporate registry certificate or business registration certificate is verified through administrative information sharing.
As with the object category, a person under an Article 13(1) closure order within the past year cannot file. And if you attach the LBS notification documents when applying for personal location information business registration, the LBS notification is deemed made — an efficient route for operators that both collect location data and run their own consumer app.
After filing, two publication duties follow. LBS operators must disclose their terms of use — the service content and the fees and conditions for collecting, using and providing location data — on their website, and must publish the reason and content of any change without delay. Where a privacy policy is published under the Personal Information Protection Act (개인정보 보호법), it must additionally cover the purpose and retention period for personal location information, the basis and retention period for confirmation records, the destruction procedure and method, and third-party provision. For the step-by-step filing procedure see our LBS business notification guide, and for foreign entities filing in Korea see LBS notification for foreign companies.
5. Small Business and One-Person Creative Enterprise Exemption
A micro business owner under Article 2 of the Framework Act on Micro Enterprises (소상공인기본법) or a one-person creative enterprise under Article 2 of the Act on the Promotion of One-Person Creative Enterprises (1인 창조기업 육성에 관한 법률) may start an LBS business without filing first. The carve-out exists so that early-stage founders are not blocked by paperwork before launch. It is a deferral, however, not a permanent exemption.
Anyone who intends to continue the LBS business more than one month after commencing it must file the trade name, principal office address, and type and content of the business within one month of the commencement date. Filing is done by submitting proof of small-business or one-person-creative-enterprise status together with the notification form, or by entering the details into the information system designated by the Commission.
Two further deadlines apply once you are inside the exemption:
- Change filing: within one month of changing the filed trade name or principal office address
- Conversion to a standard filing: within one month from the date you cease to qualify as a small business or one-person creative enterprise, supplementing the documents required for a standard LBS notification
Growing startups most often miss the second one. The moment revenue or headcount pushes you past the small-business threshold, a one-month clock starts — and missing it turns the exemption into unnotified operation. Review your qualification status at each fiscal year close.
6. Change, Transfer, Suspension and Closure Filings
Clearance is not a one-off event. The Act imposes different follow-up procedures for each category when the business changes. The key point is that a personal location information operator faces the heavier route — change registration, authorisation or approval — where the other two need only a notification.
| Event | Personal location information operator | Object location information operator | LBS operator |
|---|---|---|---|
| Change to location information system | Change registration | Change notification | Change notification |
| Change of trade name or principal office | Change notification | Change notification | Change notification |
| Transfer, merger or division | Authorisation | Notification | Notification |
| Suspension or closure | Approval | Notification | Notification |
A common ceiling applies to suspension: the suspension period may not exceed one year. Failing to resume without justifiable grounds after the period expires is a ground for cancelling the registration or ordering closure or suspension of the business, as is failing to operate for six months or more without the required approval or notification.
Notification to users and destruction duties follow as well. A personal location information operator granted suspension or closure approval must notify data subjects of the scope and period (or the closure date) at least 30 days in advance, and must destroy the personal location information and collection confirmation records at the moment of suspension or closure. LBS operators must likewise notify data subjects at least 30 days in advance and file, destroying personal location information and use/provision confirmation records upon closure. The closure filing must be accompanied by documents evidencing both the notification and the destruction.
7. Penalties for Operating Without Clearance
Sanctions scale with the procedure type. Running a registration-category business without registration is the most severe; running a notification-category business without notification comes next. All figures below are statutory maximums written into the Act itself.
| Violation | Sanction | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| Operating a location information business without registration, or registering by false or fraudulent means | Up to 5 years' imprisonment or a fine up to KRW 50 million | Art. 39(1) |
| Operating without change registration | Up to 3 years' imprisonment or a fine up to KRW 30 million | Art. 40(1) |
| Operating an object location information business without notification | Up to 3 years' imprisonment or a fine up to KRW 30 million | Art. 40(1-2) |
| Operating an LBS business without notification (including missing the small-business deadline) | Up to 3 years' imprisonment or a fine up to KRW 30 million | Art. 40(2) |
| Suspending or closing without approval | Administrative fine up to KRW 20 million | Art. 43(1)3 |
| Failure to file transfer, inheritance, merger or division | Administrative fine up to KRW 10 million | Art. 43(2)1 |
| Failure to file suspension or closure | Administrative fine up to KRW 10 million | Art. 43(2)2 |
| Failure to publish terms of use or the personal location information processing policy | Administrative fine up to KRW 10 million | Art. 43(2)3 and 7-2 |
Administrative action runs alongside criminal liability. Where registration, change registration, authorisation or notification was obtained by false or fraudulent means, the Commission must cancel the registration or authorisation or order closure of the business (Article 13(1), proviso); for other grounds it may order suspension of up to six months. A closure order then blocks any new filing for one year, which is severe for business continuity.
In short, the riskiest pattern is treating a service that handles personal location information as a mere notification case. Category selection determines penalty exposure, so map your location data flows at the design stage and confirm at each step whether the data is personal location information. For broader guidance on selecting the right permit route, see our guide to choosing a licensing specialist.
FAQ
Q. Can a sole proprietor register a personal location information business?
A. No. Article 5(1)1 requires the applicant to be a corporation, so a sole proprietor must incorporate first. Object location information notification and LBS notification have no such entity requirement.
Q. Does an app that only consumes a map API need to file?
A. If it provides a service to users using personal location information, yes — LBS notification is required even if you never measure a position yourself. An LBS business that does not deal with personal location information is excluded.
Q. How long does personal location information business registration take?
A. Under Article 2(5) of the Enforcement Decree the Commission notifies its decision within two months of receiving the application, extendable once by up to two months. Time spent on document supplementation is not counted.
Q. I launched under the small-business exemption. When must I file?
A. Within one month of the commencement date if you continue operating beyond one month. If you later cease to qualify as a small business, you must convert to a standard filing within one month of that event.
Q. What do I file when the office moves?
A. A change of principal office is a change notification in all three categories. But if a personal location information operator also moves servers or other main equipment, that is a change registration, not a change notification.
Q. How much does filing assistance cost?
A. Fees vary case by case, so we provide an exact quote during the free initial consultation.
The full text is available at the Korean Law Information Center — Act on the Protection and Use of Location Information and its Enforcement Decree.
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YouSun Administrative Attorney guides you from category assessment through business plan drafting and supplementation responses, for both registration and notification routes. Phone +82-2-363-2251, weekdays 09:30–17:30 KST.
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