The government has decided to implement integrated management of the accommodation industry ahead of the era of 30 million foreign tourists, but due to varying business registration number systems across local governments, there is no system in place to verify whether accommodations are illegal. Consequently, concerns are being raised about both a shortage of lodging facilities to accommodate tourists and the risk of tourists being exposed to safety hazards while using illegal accommodations.
According to the tourism industry on the 16th, accommodation platforms such as Airbnb, Nol Universe, and Yeogiotte are having difficulty verifying the authenticity of business registration certificates submitted by accommodation operators. This is because the registration number systems are not standardized, making automatic verification through systems impossible. An industry official lamented, "Because each local government has different notation methods, we have to manually verify each one individually," adding that "it's a structure where it's difficult to filter out illegal operations based on registration certificates alone."
Under current regulations, accommodation business registration is authorized by local governments according to the Public Health Control Act and the Tourism Promotion Act. However, without standardized forms, notation methods vary by local government even for the same type of business. For example, for rural homestay businesses, Gangneung uses 'No. 2026-Gangneung-Minbak-001,' Geoje uses '2026-0088,' and Yeosu uses 'Nongmin-Yeosu-2025-123.' Some local governments even issue registration certificates by hand, and cases have been confirmed where official seals are missing or registration numbers themselves are absent.
As a result, not only accommodation platforms but even the government is having difficulty determining the authenticity of registration certificates. Recently, forged registration certificates generated by artificial intelligence (AI) have emerged, requiring more time and cost for verification. The Korea Tourism Organization is discussing the establishment of a data cross-verification system with major accommodation platforms to filter out illegal accommodations, but assessments indicate there are limitations without a unified numbering system. This contrasts with Japan, which introduced a nationwide common registration number system when implementing related legislation in 2018 and linked it with platforms to enable real-time verification.
Accordingly, concerns are emerging that accommodation supply may not keep pace with the increasing number of foreign visitors to Korea. The industry points out that Seoul's tourism market could become saturated even with just 19 million foreign tourists annually.
There is also significant risk of tourists booking accommodations that lack fire safety equipment or fail to meet hygiene standards. Particular concerns are raised that if an accident occurs and the accommodation is found to be illegal, guests may be excluded from insurance coverage and unable to receive institutional protection, potentially leaving them without any compensation for damages.
The government decided at the 11th National Tourism Strategy Meeting in February this year to enact an Accommodation Business Act (tentative name) and unify the management system, currently divided between the Ministry of Health and Welfare (Public Health Control Act) and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Tourism Promotion Act), under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. However, preparing an integrated bill in the short term appears difficult. Regarding this, a Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official said, "We are in discussions with the Ministry of Health and Welfare to transfer integrated accommodation management duties," adding that "establishing an integrated database to manage illegal accommodations is also under discussion, but it will take time as it requires amending the law comprehensively."
Meanwhile, the tourism market is growing rapidly. Foreign visitors to Korea in the first quarter of this year reached 4.76 million, recording an all-time high for any first quarter. In particular, 2.06 million visitors entered the country in March alone when BTS comeback concerts were held, setting a new monthly record. Major markets including China, Taiwan, and Japan are simultaneously showing recovery trends. Additionally, arrivals through regional airports increased by 49.7%, clearly indicating an expansion of regional tourism. During this period, card spending by foreign tourists also increased by 23% to 3.2128 trillion won, continuing the upward consumption trend.