Tourism Farm Permits A to Z — Guide for Gyeongju Region Developers

Gyeongju, as Korea's representative tourist city, offers optimal conditions for tourism farm development. Strong demand base from tens of millions of annual tourist visits, abundant natural environment, and local government commitment to tourism industry development create perfect synergy. However, tourism farm development requires complex permits involving multiple intersecting laws.

Tourism farms are one type of tourism business regulated under Tourism Promotion Act Article 3 Paragraph 1. These businesses provide tourism services including agricultural experiences, accommodation, dining, and leisure utilizing natural environments in agricultural and rural areas. Unlike general factories or commercial facilities, tourism farms combine agriculture and tourism in complex models, requiring equally complex permit systems.

Core tourism farm permit procedures in order: First, tourism farm business plan approval (Tourism Promotion Act) is required. Business plans, land use plans, and funding plans are submitted to relevant city/county offices for review. Second, agricultural land conversion permits (Agricultural Land Act Article 34) are needed when land is agricultural. From July 2024, agricultural land preservation charges for non-agricultural promotion areas were reduced from 30% to 20% of official land prices, reducing cost burdens.

Third, building permits (Building Act Article 11) are required for accommodation facilities, restaurants, experience centers, and other structures. Fourth, environmental-related permits are needed. Depending on project scale, small-scale environmental impact assessments or environmental impact assessments may be required. Particularly in Gyeongju, due to its historic city characteristics, preliminary surveys (surface surveys) under the Cultural Property Protection Act are often mandatory.

Examining Gyeongju region success cases: Tohamsan Tourism Farm utilizes natural environments near Bulguksa Temple and Seokguram Grotto, combining agricultural experiences with accommodation. Yangjin Tourism Farm and Namchon Tourism Farm also operate successfully with tourism services reflecting regional characteristics. These businesses share the common factor of expert collaboration across tourism, agriculture, construction, and environmental sectors during permit stages.

Gyeongju City is actively promoting tourism-industry convergence strategies following the APEC Summit. Tourism farms represent one core business model in this strategy. Utilizing business attraction incentives and tourism infrastructure support provided by Gyeongju City can reduce initial business burdens.

Since tourism farm permits involve multiple intersecting laws, focusing on only one law may create blockages in others. Comprehensively reviewing Tourism Promotion Act, Agricultural Land Act, Building Act, Environmental Impact Assessment Act, and Cultural Property Protection Act, plus pre-confirming consolidated processing possibilities, marks the beginning of efficient permitting. Isang Group provides systematic support for these complex permits based on extensive experience with Gyeongju region tourism farm projects.