How to File a Restaurant Business Report — General vs. Rest Restaurants and Required Documents

Procedure

1. 1. Decide the business type by whether alcohol will be sold

   Both types may cook and sell food; the difference under the statutes is whether alcohol may be sold. A general restaurant may sell alcohol incidentally with meals. A rest restaurant cooks and sells food in forms such as beverages, ice cream, light meals (bunsik) or fast food, but drinking alcohol is not permitted there. If you plan to sell alcohol, you must report as a general restaurant.

2. 2. Check the building use before signing the lease

   A restaurant can operate in neighborhood living facilities (Class 1 or Class 2), but the permitted use differs by business type and floor area. If the use recorded in the building register does not match, the report will not be accepted, so check before signing the lease. If the floor area is at or above a certain size, a certificate of completion of fire-fighting facilities is also required.

3. 3. Prepare sanitation training and health certificates

   Complete the sanitation training for new operators (6 hours for general and rest restaurants) before the business report. Pre-opening training for new operators is in principle in-person group training, and remote (online) training is possible only when an exception set by the statutes applies, so check the method with the training institution first. All workers must obtain a health certificate (health examination result certificate, bogeonjeung), which is valid for 1 year. If you use LPG, also prepare the gas completion inspection documents.

4. 4. Business report, then business registration

   File the business report with the sanitation department of the competent city, county or district (si/gun/gu) office and receive the business report certificate. Then register the business at the tax office or on Hometax. The business type written on the signboard must also match the reported business type.

Required documents

• Business report form, ID
• Certificate of completion of sanitation training
• Health examination result certificate (health certificate) — for all workers
• Materials confirming the use recorded in the building register, lease contract
• Where applicable: certificate of completion of fire-fighting facilities, certificate of completion inspection for a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) use facility, water quality test report (when groundwater is used)

Fees

The government fee for a new business report is 28,000 won for an in-person filing and 25,200 won for an online filing, regardless of business type. Our fee for handling the business report starts from 300,000 won. Where a review of the building use or fire safety documents is also needed, we will tell you the fee after a consultation, based on the scope.

See fees and official charges for this service →

Legal basis and review date

• Food Sanitation Act, Article 41
• Enforcement Decree of the Food Sanitation Act, Article 21
• Enforcement Decree of the Food Sanitation Act, Article 25
• Enforcement Rule of the Food Sanitation Act, Article 42
• Enforcement Rule of the Food Sanitation Act, Article 52
• Rules on Health Examinations of Workers in the Food Sanitation Field, Article 2
• Enforcement Rule of the Food Sanitation Act, attached Table 26

Checked against the statutes on 2026-10-01

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

• Check the building use before signing the lease. If the use does not match, the report will not be accepted.
• If you will sell alcohol, you must report as a general restaurant. Keep the reported business type and the actual business consistent.

Frequently asked questions