Center on Philanthropy at the Beautiful Foundation had surveyed the current laws as the basis for government’s fundraising activities in the private sector. This survey is performed by Ko, Euna, and Choi, Euna, who were graduate students of Yonsei University’s Graduate School of Social Welfare, during their internship for the summer vacation of 2019. We would like to express our gratitude to them on this page.

The Current Laws on Government’s Fundraising from Private Sector in South Korea

In this article, “government’s fundraising from the private sector” must be based on the provision of laws and include all of the following activities by the governments :

• Allowing private financial resources to be included in the public funds
• Becoming fundraisers by themselves or Receiving contributions, donations, etc.
• Supporting or cooperating with private fundraising

1. Government’s fundraising from the private sector under the current laws

A. Ground Rules

Government’s fundraising from the private sector – collecting or accepting private donations – is prohibited in principle(Article 5(1) of the ACT ON COLLECTION AND USE OF DONATIONS). However, it is exceptionally possible to receive money and valuables voluntarily donated by the private sector through the Deliberative Committee on Donations(기부심사위원회)(the subparagraph 1 of Article 5(2) of the same act).

B. Funds under Article 5 of the NATIONAL FINANCE ACT

Article 5(1) and attached Table 2 of the NATIONAL FINANCE ACT stipulate a total of 68 funds that can be financed by government contributions or private levies. Among them, a total of 39 statutes stipulate private charges, and collecting activities are also allowed for two funds – “Patriots and Veterans Fund” and “Fund for International Exchanges.” (See Table 1 for details.)

2. Supporting or cooperating with private fundraising by the governments under the current laws

The government may support or cooperate with private fundraising activities according to the following acts:

• DISASTER RELIEF ACT
• COMMUNITY CHEST OF KOREA ACT
• TUBERCULOSIS PREVENTION ACT
• ORGANIZATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA NATIONAL RED CROSS ACT
• SUPPORT OF THE SAEMAUL MOVEMENT ORGANIZATION ACT
• ACT ON THE NATIONAL TRUST OF CULTURAL HERITAGES AND NATIONAL ENVIRONMENT ASSETS
• ACT ON ENCOURAGING THE DONATION OF FOOD, ETC.
• NORTH KOREAN REFUGEES PROTECTION AND SETTLEMENT SUPPORT ACT, etc.
  ※ See Table 2 for details.

Table 1. Provisions on Private Levies in Article 5(1) and attached Table 2 of the NATIONAL FINANCE ACT

No.	Basis Act	Relevant Provision	Name of Fund	Expressions of Private Levies (as financial resources of the fund)	Allowing Collecting Activities
					Y/N	Relevant Provisions
1	FRAMEWORK ACT ON SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY	Article 22(2)	Science and Technology Promotion Fund	Contributions by those, other than the Government Donations by individuals, corporations, or organizations	N
2	NATIONAL SPORTS PROMOTION ACT	Article 20	National Sports Promotion Fund	Contributions by persons other than the Government	N
3	FRAMEWORK ACT ON LABOR WELFARE	Article 88(1)	Labor Welfare Promotion Fund	Cash, goods, and other property contributed by an entity other than the State or a local government Donations by a business owner and a business owners’ association Contributions or subsidies by persons other than the Government	N
4	ACT ON WATER MANAGEMENT AND RESIDENT SUPPORT IN THE GEUM RIVER BASIN	Article 32	Fund for Management of Geum River Basin	Cash, goods, and other property contributed by a person other than the State	N
5	KOREA TECHNOLOGY FINANCE CORPORATION ACT	Article 13(1)	Korea Technology Finance Corporation	Contributions from financial companies, etc. Contributions from persons other than financial companies, etc. or Government	N
6	ACT ON WATER MANAGEMENT AND RESIDENTS SUPPORT IN THE NAKDONG RIVER BASIN	Article 34	Nakdong River Basin Management Fund	Cash, goods, and other property contributed by a person other than the State	N
7	INTER-KOREAN COOPERATION FUND ACT	Article 4	Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund	Contributions by entities other than the Government	N
8	ACT ON THE CREDIT GUARANTEE FOR FARMERS AND FISHERS	Article 4(1)	Credit Guarantee Fund for Farmers and Fishers	Contributions by the financial institutions Contributions by the agricultural, forestry and fishery organizations	N
9	AGRICULTURAL AND FISHERY DISASTER INSURANCE ACT	Article 22(1)	Agricultural and Fishery Disaster Re-insurance Fund	Contributions from any person other than the Government	N
10	FOREIGN ECONOMIC COOPERATION FUND ACT	Article 4	Foreign Economic Cooperation Fund	Contributions by public institutions or economic organizations	N
11	CULTURE AND ARTS PROMOTION ACT	Article 17(1)	Culture and Arts Promotion Fund	Donations collected from individuals or corporations Contributions from a building owner(A building owner may contribute the amount at a certain ratio of the construction cost to the fund for the promotion of culture and arts, instead of using it for installing art works)	N
12	FRAMEWORK ACT ON BROADCASTING COMMUNICATIONS DEVELOPMENT	Article 25(1)	Broadcasting Communications Development Fund	Contributions by broadcasting business entities	N
13	PATRIOTS AND VETERANS FUND ACT	Article 3(2)	Patriots and Veterans Fund	Donations made to promote the self-support and welfare of the persons, etc. of distinguished service to the State Other money or property donated for the purposes of compensating and supporting the persons, etc. of distinguished service to the State Money or property donated by companies, etc. financed by the Korean Veterans Association for the purposes of supporting the business activities of the Korean Veterans Association Money or property donated for the purposes of supporting the business activities under Article 4 of the Act on Honorable Treatment of War Veterans and Establishment of Related Associations	Y	Article 4-2 of the same Act Subparagraph 3 of Article 3 of the ACT ON COLLECTION AND USE OF DONATIONS
14	ACT ON PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS IN INFRASTRUCTURE	Article 31(1)	Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Fund	Investment from entities other than the Government and local governments	N
15	INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENT COMPENSATION INSURANCE ACT	Article 95(2)	Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance and Prevention Fund	Contributions and donations from any person other than the Government	N
16	TRADE INSURANCE ACT	Article 31(1)	Trade Insurance Fund	Contributions from banks	N
17	ACT ON THE PROMOTION OF NEWSPAPERS, ETC.	Article 34(2)	Press Development Fund	Contributions and donations from individuals and juristic persons	N
18	CREDIT GUARANTEE FUND ACT	Article 6(1)	Korea Credit Guarantee Fund	Contributions from financial companies, etc. Contributions from enterprises Contributions from persons other than the Government, financial companies, etc., or enterprises	N
19	FRAMEWORK ACT ON FISHERIES AND FISHING VILLAGES DEVELOPMENT	Article 47	Fishery Development Fund	Contribution or donation from those persons, other than the Government	N
20	FRAMEWORK ACT ON GENDER EQUALITY	Article 42	Gender Equality Fund	Contributions or donations by persons other than the State	N
21	ACT ON WATER MANAGEMENT AND RESIDENT SUPPORT IN THE YEONGSAN AND SEOMJIN RIVER BASINS	Article 32	Yeongsan and Seomjin River Systems Management Fund	Cash, goods, and other property contributed by persons, other than the State	N
22	INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION PROMOTION ACT	Article 37-5	Fund for Promotion of Development and Commercialization of Industrial Technology in the Account for the Rational Use of Specific Substances	Contributions from corporations or private individuals	N
23	EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICE ACT	Article 20	Emergency Medical Service Fund	Contributions and donations by institutions and organizations related to emergency medical services	N
24	SPECIAL ACT ON ASSISTANCE TO FARMERS, FISHERS, ETC. FOLLOWING THE CONCLUSION OF FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS	Article 14	Support Fund for Implementation of Free Trade Agreements	Contributions or donations from any person other than the Government	N
		Article 18-2	Agricultural and Fishing Villages Collaborative Cooperation Fund	Contributions from persons other than the Government, goods, or other property	N
25	ACT ON THE EMPLOYMENT PROMOTION AND VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES	Article 69	Employment Promotion and Vocational Rehabilitation Fund for Persons with Disabilities	Contributions or donations from any nongovernmental entity	N
26	SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES PROMOTION ACT	Article 64	Fund for Establishment and Promotion of Small and Medium Enterprises	Capital contribution from those other than the Government or local governments	N
27	SPECIAL ACT ON ASSISTANCE TO LOCAL NEWSPAPERS DEVELOPMENT	Article 13	Local Newspapers Development Fund	Donations from individuals or corporations	N
28	FRAMEWORK ACT ON JUVENILES	Article 54	Youth Nurture Fund	Money, goods or other property contributed by individuals, corporations, or organizations	N
29	ACT ON THE IMPROVEMENT OF WATER QUALITY AND SUPPORT FOR RESIDENTS OF THE HAN RIVER BASIN	Article 21	Han River Watershed Management Fund	Cash, goods, and other property contributed by a person other than the State	N
30	KOREA FOUNDATION ACT	Article 14	Fund for International Exchanges	Contributions and endowments of those other than the Government International Exchange Endowments (국제교류기여금) from persons to whom passports are issued	Y	Article 16 of the same Act Subparagraph 5 of Article 3 of the ACT ON COLLECTION AND USE OF DONATIONS
31	KOREA FOUNDATION FOR THE PROMOTION OF PRIVATE SCHOOL ACT	Article 18	Private Schools Promotion Fund	Donations by juristic persons, groups or individuals	N
32	KOREA HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION ACT	Article 56	Housing Finance Credit Guarantee Fund	Contributions from financial institutions Contributions from persons other than the Government and financial institution	N
33	PROMOTION OF THE MOTION PICTURES AND VIDEO PRODUCTS ACT	Article 24	Motion Picture Development Fund	Contributions from private individuals and legal entities	N
34	RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT ACT	Article 29	Radioactive Waste Management Fund	Contributions and donations by any person other than the Government	N
35	CULTURAL HERITAGE PRESERVATION FUND ACT	Article 4	Cultural Heritage Protection Fund	Contributions, cash, articles or other property contributed or donated by persons other than the Government	N
36	ASBESTOS INJURY RELIEF ACT	Article 24	Asbestos Injury Relief Fund	Contributions and donations from any person other than the Government	N
37	CRIME VICTIM PROTECTION FUND ACT	Article 4	Crime Victim Protection Fund	Cash, articles and other property contributed or donated by persons, other than the Government	N
38	ACT ON THE PROTECTION OF AND SUPPORT FOR MICRO ENTERPRISES	Article 20	Market Promotion Fund for Micro Enterprises	Cash, goods, and other properties contributed by any person other than the Government or local governments	N
39	DEPOSIT ACT	Article 29	Judicial Service Promotion Fund	Cash, articles and other property contributed or donated by persons other than the Deposited Funds Custodial Committee(공탁금관리위원회)	N

Table 2. Highlights related to supporting or cooperating with private fundraising by the governments

No.	Basis Act	Supported organization(s)	Supporting Authorities	Expression of the Supporting or Cooperating Role	Relevant Provisions
1	COMMUNITY CHEST OF KOREA ACT	Community Chest of Korea	State or local governments	May subsidize expenses incurred in collecting donations and managing and operating the Community Chest of Korea.	Article 33(1)
2	TUBERCULOSIS PREVENTION ACT	Korean Tuberculosis Association	Commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency	May subsidize all or some expenses to be incurred for the Korean Tuberculosis Association where deemed necessary for the Association to conduct investigations and research on tuberculosis and its prevention and eradication projects.	Article 23
			State	May permit the Korean Tuberculosis Association to gratuitously use national property and earn profit therefrom, where the State deems it necessary for the Association to conduct projects referred to in Article 21.	Article 24
			Any Government agency, public organization, or corporation determined by Presidential Decree	Shall cooperate in the Christmas seal fund-raising or other fund-raising activities.	Article 25(3)
3	ORGANIZATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA NATIONAL RED CROSS ACT	The Republic of Korea National Red Cross	State or local governments	May provide cooperation where the Republic of Korea National Red Cross(hereinafter “the Red Cross”) makes a request relating to the performance of its activities	Article 8(4)
			President of the Republic of Korea, National Assembly, Mayor of Seoul City, Mayors of Metropolitan Autonomous Cities, and Governors of DO	Shall appoint of the representatives, from among the members of the Red Cross.	Article 10(2)
			Minister of Strategy and Finance, Minister of Education, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Unification, Minister of Justice, Minister of National Defense, Minister of the Interior and Safety, and Minister of Health and Welfare	Shall become members of the Central Committee of the Red Cross.	Article 11(2)
			President and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea	Shall be the Honorary President and the Honorary Vice President, respectively.	Article 14(2)
			State or local governments	May provide financial support to help the Red Cross to cover the expenses incurred in providing such services, such as the expansion of relevant facilities and equipment, where the Red Cross provides health care services under the subparagraphs of Article 7(1) of the Public Health and Medical Services Act.	Article 22(2)
			State or local governments	May lease the State or public property to the Red Cross without compensation, if necessary to fulfill the purposes of the activities of the Red Cross.	Article 23
4	SUPPORT OF THE SAEMAUL MOVEMENT ORGANIZATION ACT	Saemaul Movement Organization	State or local governments	May grant the Saemaul Movement Organization contributions and subsidies to cover expenses involved in the operation of such Organization. May subsidize all or part of expenses necessary in carrying out Saemaul Movement overseas cooperation projects of Saemaul Movement Organization.	Article 3
			Government	Shall extend tax reduction and exemption to the Saemaul Movement Organization, as prescribed by the Restriction of Special Taxation Act. Shall apply special cases concerning taxation to any property contributed or donated to the Saemaul Movement Organization under Article 3(3), as prescribed by the Restriction of Special Taxation Act.	Article 5
5	ACT ON THE NATIONAL TRUST OF CULTURAL HERITAGES AND NATIONAL ENVIRONMENT ASSETS	National Trust Corporation (National Trust of Cultural Heritage, National Trust of Natural Environment)	State or local governments	May reduce or exempt taxes for the national trust corporation and property invested or donated to the national trust corporation, in accordance with Acts related to taxes.	Article 15
		National Trust Corporation, etc.	State or local governments	May subsidize some of expenses incurred in conserving or managing conservation property for the national trust corporation or corporations and organizations which have concluded conservation agreements with the national trust corporation under Article 19.	Article 16
6	ACT ON ENCOURAGING THE DONATION OF FOOD, ETC.	Providers or Business Operators with Donated Food, etc.	State or local governments	May fully or partly subsidize operating expenses or business expenses necessary for business of providing donated food, etc. to providers or business operators.	Article 7(2)
			State, local governments and public agencies	May provide providers and business operators with some food, etc., in their possession, if necessary.	Article 7(3)

 

APPENDIX 1. Names of Acts Above Mentioned in Korean

Source: Korean Law Information Center(law.go.kr), Ministry of Government Legislation

in English	in Korean
ACT ON COLLECTION AND USE OF DONATIONS	기부금품모집및사용에관한법률
ACT ON ENCOURAGING THE DONATION OF FOOD, ETC.	식품등기부활성화에관한법률
ACT ON PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS IN INFRASTRUCTURE	사회기반시설에대한민간투자법
ACT ON THE CREDIT GUARANTEE FOR FARMERS AND FISHERS	농림수산업자신용보증법
ACT ON THE EMPLOYMENT PROMOTION AND VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES	장애인고용촉진및직업재활법
ACT ON THE IMPROVEMENT OF WATER QUALITY AND SUPPORT FOR RESIDENTS OF THE HAN RIVER BASIN	한강수계상수원수질개선및주민지원등에관한법률
ACT ON THE NATIONAL TRUST OF CULTURAL HERITAGES AND NATIONAL ENVIRONMENT ASSETS	문화유산과자연환경자산에관한국민신탁법
ACT ON THE PROMOTION OF NEWSPAPERS, ETC.	신문등의진흥에관한법률
ACT ON THE PROTECTION OF AND SUPPORT FOR MICRO ENTERPRISES	소상공인보호및지원에관한법률
ACT ON WATER MANAGEMENT AND RESIDENT SUPPORT IN THE GEUM RIVER BASIN	금강수계물관리및주민지원등에관한법률
ACT ON WATER MANAGEMENT AND RESIDENT SUPPORT IN THE YEONGSAN AND SEOMJIN RIVER BASINS	영산강·섬진강수계물관리및주민지원등에관한법률
ACT ON WATER MANAGEMENT AND RESIDENTS SUPPORT IN THE NAKDONG RIVER BASIN	낙동강수계물관리및주민지원등에관한법률
AGRICULTURAL AND FISHERY DISASTER INSURANCE ACT	농어업재해보험법
ASBESTOS INJURY RELIEF ACT	석면피해구제법
COMMUNITY CHEST OF KOREA ACT1)	사회복지공동모금회법
CREDIT GUARANTEE FUND ACT	신용보증기금법
CRIME VICTIM PROTECTION FUND ACT	범죄피해자보호기금법
CULTURAL HERITAGE PRESERVATION FUND ACT	문화재보호기금법
CULTURE AND ARTS PROMOTION ACT	문화예술진흥법
DEPOSIT ACT	공탁법
DISASTER RELIEF ACT	재해구호법
EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICE ACT	응급의료에관한법률
FOREIGN ECONOMIC COOPERATION FUND ACT	대외경제협력기금법
FRAMEWORK ACT ON BROADCASTING COMMUNICATIONS DEVELOPMENT	방송통신발전기본법
FRAMEWORK ACT ON FISHERIES AND FISHING VILLAGES DEVELOPMENT	수산업·어촌발전기본법
FRAMEWORK ACT ON GENDER EQUALITY	양성평등기본법
FRAMEWORK ACT ON JUVENILES	청소년기본법
FRAMEWORK ACT ON LABOR WELFARE	근로복지기본법
FRAMEWORK ACT ON SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY	과학기술기본법
INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENT COMPENSATION INSURANCE ACT	산업재해보상보험법
INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION PROMOTION ACT	산업기술혁신촉진법
INTER-KOREAN COOPERATION FUND ACT	남북협력기금법
KOREA FOUNDATION ACT	한국국제교류재단법
KOREA FOUNDATION FOR THE PROMOTION OF PRIVATE SCHOOL ACT	한국사학진흥재단법
KOREA HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION ACT	한국주택금융공사법
KOREA TECHNOLOGY FINANCE CORPORATION ACT	기술보증기금법
NATIONAL FINANCE ACT	국가재정법
NATIONAL SPORTS PROMOTION ACT	국민체육진흥법
NORTH KOREAN REFUGEES PROTECTION AND SETTLEMENT SUPPORT ACT	북한이탈주민의보호및정착지원에관한법률
ORGANIZATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA NATIONAL RED CROSS ACT	대한적십자사조직법
PATRIOTS AND VETERANS FUND ACT	보훈기금법
PROMOTION OF THE MOTION PICTURES AND VIDEO PRODUCTS ACT	영화및비디오물의진흥에관한법률
RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT ACT	방사성폐기물관리법
RESTRICTION OF SPECIAL TAXATION ACT	조세특례제한법
SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES PROMOTION ACT	중소기업진흥에관한법률
SPECIAL ACT ON ASSISTANCE TO FARMERS, FISHERS, ETC. FOLLOWING THE CONCLUSION OF FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS	자유무역협정체결에따른농어업인등의지원에관한특별법
SPECIAL ACT ON ASSISTANCE TO LOCAL NEWSPAPERS DEVELOPMENT2)	지역신문발전지원특별법
SUPPORT OF THE SAEMAUL MOVEMENT ORGANIZATION ACT	새마을운동조직육성법
TRADE INSURANCE ACT	무역보험법
TUBERCULOSIS PREVENTION ACT	결핵예방법

Note
1. From Community Chest of Korea website, because its English translations are not in the source.
2. Arbitrarily translated, because its English translations are not in the source.

 

APPENDIX 2. Names of Funds Above Mentioned in Korean

Source: Korean Law Information Center(law.go.kr), Ministry of Government Legislation

in English	in Korean
Science and Technology Promotion Fund	과학기술진흥기금
National Sports Promotion Fund	국민체육진흥기금
Fund for International Exchanges	국제교류기금
Labor Welfare Promotion Fund	근로복지진흥기금
Fund for Management of Geum River Basin	금강수계관리기금
Korea Technology Finance Corporation	기술보증기금
Nakdong River Basin Management Fund	낙동강수계관리기금
Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund	남북협력기금
Credit Guarantee Fund for Farmers and Fishers	농림수산업자신용보증기금
Agricultural and Fishery Disaster Re-insurance Fund	농어업재해재보험기금
Agricultural and Fishing Villages Collaborative Cooperation Fund	농어촌상생협력기금
Foreign Economic Cooperation Fund	대외경제협력기금
Trade Insurance Fund	무역보험기금
Culture and Arts Promotion Fund	문화예술진흥기금
Cultural Heritage Protection Fund	문화재보호기금
Radioactive Waste Management Fund	방사성폐기물관리기금
Broadcasting Communications Development Fund	방송통신발전기금
Crime Victim Protection Fund	범죄피해자보호기금
Patriots and Veterans Fund	보훈기금
Judicial Service Promotion Fund	사법서비스진흥기금
Private Schools Promotion Fund	사학진흥기금
Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Fund	산업기반신용보증기금
Fund for Promotion of Development and Commercialization of Industrial Technology in the Account for the Rational Use of Specific Substances	산업기술진흥및사업화촉진기금–특정물질사용합리화계정
Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance and Prevention Fund	산업재해보상보험 및 예방 기금
Asbestos Injury Relief Fund	석면피해구제기금
Market Promotion Fund for Micro Enterprises	소상공인시장진흥기금
Fishery Development Fund	수산발전기금
Korea Credit Guarantee Fund	신용보증기금
Gender Equality Fund	양성평등기금
Press Development Fund	언론진흥기금
Yeongsan and Seomjin River Systems Management Fund	영산강ㆍ섬진강수계관리기금
Motion Picture Development Fund	영화발전기금
Emergency Medical Service Fund	응급의료기금
Support Fund for Implementation of Free Trade Agreements	자유무역협정이행지원기금
Employment Promotion and Vocational Rehabilitation Fund for Persons with Disabilities	장애인고용촉진및직업재활기금
Housing Finance Credit Guarantee Fund	주택금융신용보증기금
Fund for Establishment and Promotion of Small and Medium Enterprises	중소벤처기업창업및진흥기금
Local Newspapers Development Fund	지역신문발전기금
Youth Nurture Fund	청소년육성기금
Han River Watershed Management Fund	한강수계관리기금