Background
As rents and jeonse deposits climbed in 2020, Korea passed a package known as the "three lease laws": a renewal right, a rent-increase cap and lease reporting. The renewal right and 5% cap took effect on 31 July 2020, giving tenants a "2+2 year" horizon. Economists call such rules second-generation rent regulation (Arnott, 1995); evidence from San Francisco shows they stabilize incumbent tenants but can shrink rental supply (Diamond et al., 2019).
How it works
- Request between six and two months before expiry, ideally in writing or by certified mail.
- Once only, for two years; increases are limited to 5%, and local ordinances may set lower caps.
- The tenant may still terminate a renewed lease with three months' notice.
- Landlords may refuse for listed reasons, such as two periods of unpaid rent, subletting without consent, planned reconstruction, or occupancy by the owner or the owner's lineal relatives.
False owner-occupancy and implied renewal
If a landlord refuses on owner-occupancy grounds and then rents to someone else within the two years, the tenant can claim damages. If neither side says anything before expiry, the lease renews implicitly, which does not use up the renewal right. Protect the deposit with a fixed-date stamp.
FAQ
- How many times can I use it?
- Once, for a two-year extension.
- Does implied renewal count?
- No. Implied renewal is separate, so the right remains available.
Sources reviewed: 2026-11-09
References
- 주택임대차보호법 제6조의3(계약갱신 요구 등)·제7조(차임 등의 증감청구권). Housing Lease Protection Act articles on the renewal right and the 5% rent-increase cap.
- 대한민국 정책브리핑. (n.d.). 개정 「주택임대차보호법」…국민 궁금증 많은 질문과 답변. Government Q&A; issued after the 2020 amendment on common renewal disputes.
- 상가건물 임대차보호법 제10조(계약갱신 요구 등). Commercial Building Lease Protection Act article granting renewal up to ten years.
- 찾기쉬운 생활법령정보. (n.d.). 주택임대차보호법. Plain-language guide to renewal, implied renewal and early termination.
- Arnott, R. (1995). Time for revisionism on rent control? Journal of Economic Perspectives, 9(1), 99–120. Argues second-generation rent regulation should be judged separately from hard rent freezes.
- Diamond, R., McQuade, T., & Qian, F. (2019). The effects of rent control expansion on tenants, landlords, and inequality: Evidence from San Francisco. American Economic Review, 109(9), 3365–3394. Rent control helped incumbent tenants stay but reduced rental supply in San Francisco.
- Autor, D. H., Palmer, C. J., & Pathak, P. A. (2014). Housing market spillovers: Evidence from the end of rent control in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Journal of Political Economy, 122(3), 661–717. Ending rent control raised nearby property values in Cambridge.