South Korea: refrigerant rules in the Clean Air Conservation Act, HFC phase-down, KGS

Three laws govern refrigerants

South Korea has no single law equivalent to the EU F-gas Regulation. The handling of refrigerants in installed equipment is regulated by the 대기환경보전법 (Clean Air Conservation Act), Articles 76-9 to 76-15, and by its enforcement rule (대기환경보전법 시행규칙) ^[1][2]. The supply of HFCs is controlled by the 오존층 보호 등을 위한 특정물질의 관리에 관한 법률 (Act on the Management of Specified Substances for the Protection of the Ozone Layer, the ozone act; renamed from the older title ending 제조규제 등에 관한 법률 by an amendment of 18 October 2022) ^[3]. The safety of refrigerating plants is regulated by the 고압가스 안전관리법 (High-Pressure Gas Safety Control Act) ^[7].

The authority for the refrigerant management rules is the environment ministry, renamed 기후에너지환경부 (Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment) in autumn 2025. The rules are now issued in its name ^[2]. The ozone act and the HFC quotas are administered by the industry ministry, which the act now names 산업통상부 (Ministry of Trade and Industry; earlier MOTIE) following the government reorganisation of 1 October 2025 ^[3][4].

Which equipment is covered

The rules apply to refrigerant-using equipment for heating and cooling of buildings, for chilled and frozen food storage and for other industrial uses, when the refrigerating capacity is at least 20 tons per day (20 RT) ^[2]. Capacity is calculated under the high-pressure gas rules. Equipment with a lower capacity is currently not covered, even if its charge is large ^[2].

Duties of the owner

The owner, occupier or manager (소유자등) of covered equipment must follow the refrigerant management standards, 냉매관리기준, in Annex 35-3 of the enforcement rule ^[1][2]:

• Refrigerant must not be released to the atmosphere, and it must not leak during recovery, reuse, storage, transport or handover ^[2].
• Components where leaks can occur, such as the compressor, piping and expansion valve, must be leak checked at least once a year, visually and with a leak detector ^[2].
• A leak check carried out at least once a year under the safety management rules or the periodic inspection of the high-pressure gas act counts as done ^[2][7].
• If a leak is found, the cause must be investigated and the equipment repaired without delay ^[2].
• On disposal, transfer, servicing or relocation the refrigerant must be recovered, either by the owner with the prescribed equipment or by a registered recovery business ^[1][2].

Logbook and reporting

Servicing, recovery and disposal must be entered in a refrigerant logbook, 냉매관리기록부 (Form 63), kept for 3 years ^[2]. A copy with supporting documents must be submitted to the ministry by the end of February of the following year. Data entered in the electronic refrigerant information system, 냉매정보관리시스템 (RIMS, run by Korea Environment Corporation), count as submitted on the day of entry ^[2].

Registered recovery businesses

Since the 2018 amendment, anyone running a refrigerant recovery business must be registered as a 냉매회수업 (refrigerant recovery business) with the ministry. Registration requires facilities, equipment and technicians that meet the criteria of the enforcement decree ^[1]. The business must follow the refrigerant management standards, record its results in a recovery record (Form 68) kept for 3 years and report them, unless the data are already in RIMS ^[1][2]. It may not lend its name or registration certificate to others ^[1]. Its technicians must complete initial training within 4 months of being registered, followed by refresher training ^[2].

The ozone act and the HFC phase-down

South Korea deposited its ratification of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on 19 January 2023, and the amendment entered into force for the country on 19 April 2023 ^[5]. The ozone act was amended so that HFCs are controlled substances, split into two groups. The act also provides a basis for requiring destruction of HFC-23 and for charges ^[3][4]. South Korea follows the schedule for developing countries under Article 5 of the Montreal Protocol: consumption (production plus imports minus exports) was frozen in 2024 and must be cut step by step to 80% below the baseline by 2045 ^[4].

The phase-down works through quotas for producers and importers, not through requirements on individual installations ^[3][4]. Plan for high-GWP HFCs becoming harder to obtain.

Planned changes 2025–2027

In December 2024 the environment ministry, together with other ministries, presented a plan to cut HFC emissions by about 20 million tonnes CO2e by 2035 ^[6]. The plan includes:

• The threshold for equipment covered by the refrigerant management rules drops from 20 RT to 10 RT, and equipment that leaks repeatedly can be given an improvement order.
• A move to low-GWP refrigerants by product group: from 2027 for products that already have alternatives, such as household refrigerators, and step by step in 2028–2032 for industrial refrigeration and others.
• Labelling of refrigerators and air conditioners with refrigerant type, amount and GWP.
• Wider use of reclaimed refrigerant, with a quality certification scheme, and recovery of residual refrigerant by the public sector when equipment is replaced or scrapped.

The high-pressure gas act and the KGS codes

A refrigerating plant counts as manufacture of high-pressure gas (냉동제조). A plant with a refrigerating capacity of at least 20 tons per day needs a permit. For refrigerants that are neither flammable nor toxic the permit applies from 50 tons for industrial use and cold storage, and from 100 tons for heating and cooling of buildings. Smaller plants may instead require a notification: from 3 tons per day, or from 20 tons per day for non-flammable, non-toxic refrigerants (Enforcement Decree Art. 4) ^[7].

The technical requirements are in the KGS codes of the Korea Gas Safety Corporation. KGS FP113 covers facilities, technology and inspection of refrigerating plants, and KGS AA111 covers the manufacture of refrigerating machines for high-pressure gas ^[8].

Practical checklist

1. Calculate the plant's refrigerating capacity under the high-pressure gas rules. It decides both the refrigerant management duties (20 RT) and the permit or notification under the high-pressure gas act ^[2][7].
2. Leak check at least once a year and enter the result in the logbook or in RIMS ^[2].
3. Use a registered recovery business when refrigerant has to be recovered, unless the owner has the prescribed equipment ^[1][2].
4. Submit the logbook by the end of February of the following year ^[2].
5. Choose low-GWP refrigerants for new projects: HFC quotas are shrinking and new product requirements are coming ^[4][6].