Trucking Transport Business Permit and Transfer — Exceptions to the Ban on New Permits, Garage and Documents

Procedure

1. 1. Check whether the vehicle type is eligible for a new permit

   The current Supply Standards for Trucking Transport Business (public notice of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport) prohibits new permits for trucking transport business in principle. The vehicles that may be permitted as exceptions are: (1) parcel delivery trucks (maximum payload of 2.5 tons or less); (2) towed vehicles pulled by another vehicle (dump trailers excluded); (3) where the metropolitan mayor or provincial governor judges it necessary for transporting specific cargo in the region, road-sweeping and cleaning vehicles and special-purpose type trucks with a maximum payload of 100 tons or more; and (4) special-purpose type special motor vehicles. The same standards apply to a permit for change to increase the number of vehicles, so if your vehicle does not fall under these exceptions, you start by transfer and acquisition.

2. 2. Check the conditions for transfer and acquisition

   Transport business is divided into general trucking transport business, which uses 20 or more vehicles, and individual trucking transport business, which uses 1 vehicle. A transfer must cover the entire business, and in principle 2 years (6 months for individual trucking that is not under a parcel-delivery-only permit) must have passed since the date the transferor obtained the permit or acquired the business. The transferee and the executive officers of a corporation must have no grounds for disqualification. A temporary permit, a permit obtained in succession after the temporary permit period ended, and a permit or permit for change granted on condition of using electric or hydrogen trucks cannot be transferred.

3. 3. Prepare the qualification certificate and the garage

   Everyone who will drive the vehicles taken over must hold a freight transport qualification certificate, and if the representative drives personally, the representative needs his or her own certificate. The garage area for 1 vehicle must be at least that vehicle's length multiplied by its width. The city, county or district (si/gun/gu) where the garage is located checks the land use plan and whether the garage is installed, and issues a confirmation certificate of garage installation within 10 days from the date of application. In principle the garage must be owned by the operator, but land leased for 1 year or more is also accepted (for individual trucking, a contract for a parking lot or garage used exclusively for 6 months or more).

4. 4. Report of transfer and acquisition

   The transferee submits the transfer and acquisition report form to the competent authority (the metropolitan city or province, or the city, county or district to which the authority is delegated), attaching a copy of the contract, the confirmation certificate of garage installation, copies of the qualification certificates and other documents. The competent authority gives notice of whether the report is accepted within 5 days from the date it receives the report. Once the report is accepted, the transferee succeeds to the transferor's status as a transport business operator, and the contracts concluded with owner-operators under consignment management contracts pass to the transferee on the same terms. If the vehicle type is eligible for a new permit, apply with the permit application form, attaching documents on the office and vehicle details, the confirmation certificate of garage installation, and the vehicle sales contract or motor vehicle registration certificate.

5. 5. Follow-up management after the takeover

   File the report of transport records and, every 5 years, the report on the permit standards (individual transport business operators are exempt from both). A change of trade name or representative (corporation), replacement of a retired vehicle with another vehicle, and relocation of the principal office within the jurisdiction require a report of change. Increasing the number of vehicles and moving the principal office outside the jurisdiction require a permit for change, and the added vehicles must be of a type that meets the supply standards. A transport business operator that has vehicles specified by statute among trucks with a maximum payload of 5 tons or more or a gross weight of 10 tons or more must take out cargo liability insurance. A tachograph (operation recording device) must be installed in commercial vehicles, except trucks with a maximum payload of 1 ton or less and certain others.

Required documents

• Report form for transfer and acquisition of trucking transport business (submitted by the transferee)
• Copy of the transfer and acquisition contract
• Document proving that the transferee does not fall under any ground for disqualification (if the transferee is not a transport business operator)
• Document proving the corporation's decision on the transfer and acquisition (if the transferor or the transferee is a corporation)
• Confirmation certificate of garage installation (omitted if the transfer and acquisition contract or other documents confirm that the garage is taken over together)
• Copy of the freight transport qualification certificate or of the proof of qualification of the person who will drive the acquired vehicle
• Written consent of the owner-operators under consignment management contracts (if there are any; if the entire business is transferred, written consent of 1/2 or more of those owner-operators)
• For vehicle types eligible for a new permit: permit application form; document stating the name, location and size of the principal office, business offices and cargo handling offices; document stating the number, kind, model name, type designation, model year and maximum payload of the vehicles; confirmation certificate of garage installation; vehicle sales contract or transfer certificate, or motor vehicle registration certificate or motor vehicle manufacturing certificate

Fees

The government fee for a transfer and acquisition report is 3,000 won per case. A permit application for a vehicle type eligible for a new permit costs 14,000 won as the base fee, and for 2 or more vehicles, 2,000 won is added for each vehicle after the first 1. The price of the transfer and acquisition is an amount the parties set by contract and is separate from government fees. Agency fees in the industry range from several hundred thousand won up to the 1,000,000 won range, and we will advise after a consultation, based on the number of vehicles and how the garage is secured.

See fees and official charges for this service →

Legal basis and review date

• Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 3
• Supply Standards for Trucking Transport Business (Public Notice of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport), Article 3
• Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 8
• Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 16
• Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 35
• Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 47-2
• Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 67
• Enforcement Decree of the Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 3
• Enforcement Rule of the Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 5
• Enforcement Rule of the Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 6
• Enforcement Rule of the Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 13
• Enforcement Rule of the Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 14
• Enforcement Rule of the Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 23
• Enforcement Rule of the Trucking Transport Business Act, Article 58
• Traffic Safety Act, Article 54-2
• Traffic Safety Act, Article 55

Checked against the statutes on 2026-10-05

Statutes and public notices change, so each case needs to be checked individually. Statute titles are given in English for reference. The Korean statutes are the authoritative text.

Check these first

• Transporting cargo for pay without a permit is punishable by imprisonment for up to 2 years or a fine of up to 20,000,000 won. Do not start operating before the transfer and acquisition report is accepted.
• Transferring the vehicle registration alone does not transfer the business. Before buying a vehicle, check with the competent authority whether the permit you will take over is a transferable permit and whether the transfer restriction period has passed.
• The same supply standards as for a new permit apply to increasing the number of vehicles. If you plan to add vehicles after the takeover, first check whether the vehicle type falls under an exception.

Frequently asked questions