Farmland Disposal Order in Korea (농지 처분명령): 2026 Guide

What is a farmland disposal order (농지 처분명령)?

It is a written order from the city, county or district head to sell named farmland within 6 months. Article 11 of the Farmland Act sets it out ^[1].

The order is the second step. It normally follows a disposal duty (처분의무) under Article 10, which gives the owner 1 year to sell voluntarily ^[1].

Three cases lead straight to an order: a farmland acquisition certificate obtained by fraud, a farm company running a property business, and idle farmland in a land-transaction permit zone (Art. 11(1)) ^[1].

“The head of a city, county or district shall order a farmland owner who falls under any of the following to dispose of the farmland within six months.”

What triggers the duty to sell farmland?

Not using the land as the law and your farming plan require. The county decides that the owner is not farming without a valid reason ^[1].

The decree lists the valid reasons. They include leasing the land in a way Article 23 allows, natural disasters, land improvement, military service, illness, study and public office (Decree Art. 9) ^[2].

In practice, the weekend buyer is the common case. Someone buys a house with a small field, plants nothing for years, and falls under Article 10(1)4 or 10(1)7 ^[1].

How does the process run from notice to order?

Notice, then 1 year to sell, then a 6-month order, then a yearly charge. Each step has its own article ^[1].

1. The county finds a trigger and sends a notice naming the land and the deadline (Art. 10(2)) ^[1].
2. You have 1 year from the date of the cause to sell the land (Art. 10(1)) ^[1].
3. If you have not sold, the county orders you to sell within 6 months (Art. 11(1)2) ^[1].
4. You may ask the Korea Rural Community Corporation (KRC) to buy the land (Art. 11(2)) ^[1].
5. If the order is ignored without a valid reason, a charge of 25% is imposed each year until you comply (Art. 63) ^[1].

The county must also report each notice to the Minister of Agriculture through the province within 1 month (Art. 10(4)) ^[1]. This creates a national record of open cases.

When KRC buys, it pays based on the official land price. If nearby actual prices are lower, it may use those instead (Art. 11(3)) ^[1].

What changed in the 2026 Farmland Act amendment?

The order became mandatory, sales to family were barred, and the ministry gained a direct order power. Act No. 21798 put these parts in force on 28 August 2026 ^{[1] [6]}.

Before, Article 11 said the county "may" order a sale. It now says the county "shall" order it. MAFRA described this as turning local discretion into a duty ^[6].

You can no longer sell to your household members, spouse, parents, grandparents, children, or a company you run. Article 10(3) and Article 11(2) list these buyers ^[1].

If a county does not act, the Minister or the provincial governor can set a deadline. After that, they can issue the order themselves (Art. 11(5), (6)) ^[1].

Idle farmland in a land-transaction permit zone skips the 1-year duty. It goes straight to an order (Art. 10(1) proviso, Art. 11(1)4) ^[1].

How much is the enforcement charge (이행강제금)?

25% of the land's value each year, using the higher of a certified appraisal or the official individual land price (Art. 63(1)) ^[1].

For example, take a 900 m² field with an official land price of ₩40,000 per m². Its value is ₩36 million. If no appraisal is higher, the charge is ₩9 million a year ^[1].

The charge can be imposed once a year from the day after the order's deadline until you sell (Art. 63(5)) ^[1]. Once you comply, new charges stop, but charges already imposed are still collected ^[1].

Before imposing it, the county must give at least 10 days to submit an opinion (Decree Art. 75(1)) ^[2]. You may object within 30 days of notice, and the case then goes to court (Art. 63(7), (8)) ^[1].

A pending KRC purchase request is a valid reason not to be charged. So is a law or court ruling that blocks the sale (Decree Art. 75(3)) ^[2].

Who does the 2026 farmland survey (전수조사) check?

Phase 1 in 2026 covers farmland acquired since the Farmland Act took effect in 1996, about 1.15 million hectares. Phase 2 in 2027 covers older holdings ^[5].

MAFRA's plan screens land with administrative data, drone and aerial photos and AI from May to July. Field checks of selected land run from August to December ^[5].

• Land-transaction permit zones and the whole capital region ^[5].
• Farmland bought at auction, owned by farm companies or owned by foreigners ^[5].
• Certificates issued in the last 10 years (not inheritance), owners living outside the area, and co-owned purchases ^[5].
• Land flagged in past surveys or by the 2026 basic screening ^[5].

MAFRA said the farmland owned when the Act took effect in 1996 is not subject to the disposal duty and order rules ^[5]. A field you buy today is a new acquisition.

On 21 September 2026 the government said results were not yet final. It plans to separate minor breaches from clear speculation by the end of 2026 ^[7].

A Prime Minister's directive set up a farmland survey task force inside MAFRA on 6 October 2026. It runs until 31 December 2027 ^[8].

Is farmland checked every year, not just in 2026?

Yes. Article 54 requires a survey at least once a year of farmland listed by ministry rule ^[1]. The 2026 national survey sits on top of it.

The rule lists farmland with a certificate issued in the last 5 years, land bought by people living outside that or a neighbouring county, co-owned purchases, and farm company land (Rule Art. 63(1)) ^{[3] [4]}.

Farmland owned by registered foreigners and by ethnic Koreans with a domestic residence report is also on the list. Land entrusted to KRC for lease is excluded ^[3].

Survey staff may enter land after notifying the owner by post, phone, email or text. They may not enter fenced land before sunrise or after sunset without consent (Art. 54-4) ^[1].

How can an owner avoid or defer an order?

Farm the land, lease it in a lawful way, or sign a sale consignment with KRC. Each has a basis in the Act or decree ^{[1] [2]}.

If the 1-year duty passes unsold, the county may defer the order for 3 years. You must farm the land yourself or sign a sale consignment contract with KRC (Art. 12(1)) ^[1].

If the deferral ends without an order, the disposal duty for that land is treated as gone (Art. 12(3)) ^[1]. The county checks deferred owners every year (Art. 12(4)) ^[1].

For the 2026 survey, MAFRA said owners found idle or leasing unlawfully will first get time to fix it. It plans to defer duties for land entrusted to the farmland bank (농지은행) ^[7].

Obtaining a certificate by fraud is different. It can bring up to 5 years in prison or a fine up to the land's value (Art. 57) ^[1].

Farmland is one of eight checks in the rural house checklist. Read the farmland acquisition certificate guide before you buy, or browse rural listings.

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