South Korea FTC faces criticism over rising uncollected fines

South Korean lawmaker Song Eon-seok has raised concerns regarding the effectiveness of the Fair Trade Commission’s (FTC) recent surge in administrative fines. Data analyzed by Song shows that while the number of fine impositions increased significantly—reaching 194 cases in 2025 compared to an average of approximately 100 cases annually between 2021 and 2024—a vast majority of these amounts remain uncollected.

As of July, the total amount of fines imposed reached approximately 1.35 trillion won, nearly four times the total amount from the previous year. However, uncollected fines totaled over 1.3 trillion won. This includes roughly 773 billion won in pending payments due to installment plans or extensions, and 453 billion won in suspended collections resulting from court stay-of-execution orders. Notably, the amount of collections suspended by court decisions has risen 54-fold since 2021.

Furthermore, the FTC has faced increasing costs from administrative litigation. Refunds and interest paid back to companies following court rulings reached 107.5 billion won by July, surpassing previous annual highs. Song criticized the focus on increasing the scale of fines, arguing that the government should prioritize the accuracy and legal soundness of FTC dispositions to ensure actual collection rather than merely increasing the nominal amounts.