Work to the deadline in your notice. Save the original, confirm it really came from GRAC, translate the key parts, and put one person in charge. Asking for clarification does not automatically pause the deadline.
Day one
Save the original
Keep the email with its headers, or the envelope, plus the Korean text, attachments and any portal reference. Work from a copy.
Write down the key details
Who sent it, the reference number, the legal entity and games named, the year measured, what is requested, how to submit, and the exact deadline (date and time, Korean time).
Check it is genuine
Compare the sender and submission channel with the contacts on GRAC's or the ministry's official site. The ministry's guide lists this address for designation notices: gracagent@grac.or.kr. Verify any unfamiliar address or payment request before acting on it.
Name one owner
Choose one person, plus a backup in a time zone that can act before the Korean deadline.
Which kind of notice is it?
| Notice | Purpose | What to send |
|---|---|---|
| Eligibility or install-data check | To know whether your entity or a mobile title meets a test | The correct legal entity, plus its revenue or Korean-device install data |
| Designation request | For you to appoint an agent | The designation certificate, your Korean terms, and proof the agent details are live |
| Article 31(2) report request | A request from the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism after an incident that seriously harms, or may harm, orderly game distribution | Send the report. That request also triggers the agent requirement. Routine GRAC emails, or Article 31(2) requests from a local government or for another reason, do not. |
| Labeling or loot-box issue (Article 33) | A question about your display duties, such as probability disclosures | Your answer. An agent can submit it, but you must prepare and approve it. |
Evidence to gather
- Company: certificate of incorporation, legal name, representative, head office, fiscal year, group chart.
- Who does what: which entity distributes or provides each game in Korea, and whether any Korean entity actually runs that business.
- Sales: the entity's prior-year worldwide sales across all countries and business lines, with the average KRW exchange rate used.
- Installs: for each named mobile game, installs on Korea-sold devices from 1 January to 31 December of the relevant year, by app store and then combined. Include release and shutdown dates, store exports, metric definitions, time zone, territory settings, how duplicates were handled, and who pulled the data. A dashboard screenshot may not be enough if it does not show Korean devices, the full year, every store, or installs rather than active users.
- Agent records: your agent agreement, designation or re-designation certificate, Korean terms and URLs, screenshots, and past GRAC submissions.
- Open matters: any Article 31 or 33 requests, with owners and deadlines.
Installs of the same title are added across stores, and the annual total is divided by 365. Never add different titles together.
Choose your response
| Situation | Response |
|---|---|
| The data shows you must appoint | Appoint a qualifying Korean agent in writing, update the Korean terms of every game you offer in Korea, complete the certificate, and send what the notice asks for before the deadline. |
| The notice names the wrong entity | Show, with documents, which entity contracts, publishes, holds the store accounts and runs the service. A brand or group name is not the legal entity. |
| The install figure looks wrong | Before the deadline, send the source exports, the year, the Korean-device scope, per-store totals, the reconciliation and the calculation. Say exactly which figure you dispute and why. |
| The request is unclear | Ask the named official to clarify the request, legal basis, period or format. Keep preparing in the meantime, and get any extension confirmed explicitly. |
| You already have an agent | Check that the certificate, Korean terms and published details match. Send the proof requested and fix any mismatch promptly. |
Before you send
- Have the right entity approve the response and sign or seal it.
- Reply in the language and form the notice asks for. An English translation does not replace the Korean text.
- Check that names, addresses, dates, titles, store totals and URLs match across the cover note, forms, evidence and live pages.
- Write a short cover note: reference number, company, games, deadline, and a numbered list of attachments.
- Keep the sent message, final attachments, delivery receipt, and dated copies of any web pages you rely on.
From April 2027
From 21 April 2027, the ministry and GRAC gain an express power to demand records when checking eligibility or a possible violation. Keep this evidence file current every year instead of building it after a notice arrives. Answer any notice you have now under today's rules. See what changes.
Sources
- Ministry final announcement and English guide, 14 October 2025
- Enforcement Decree, Article 18-3The three tests.
- Act No. 22085Effective 21 April 2027.