South Korea amends Health Promotion Act to allow fines for public drinking

In February 2024, an amendment to South Korea's National Health Promotion Act gave local governments stronger tools to curb drinking in public places. The law, which governs public health policy, already allowed authorities to designate certain open spaces as alcohol-free areas. Until then, however, there was no financial penalty, so such designations were largely symbolic and difficult to enforce.

Under the amendment, a city or district can designate a public space, such as a plaza, park or area around a station, as an alcohol-free zone through a local ordinance. People who drink in a designated zone can be fined up to 100,000 won (roughly 70 to 75 US dollars). The exact amount and the areas covered were left to each local government to decide.

The change responded to long-standing complaints about public drunkenness, noise, litter and a sense of insecurity in busy open spaces. It also set the legal basis for later local measures, including the rules for Seoul Station Plaza, where the ban and fines were introduced under the new framework.