The Approval Power for Reconstruction Projects Is Set to Shift...‘Automatic Approval’ if District Head Fails to Respond

[Financial News] The management-and-disposal procedures for major urban renewal projects in Seoul—including Eunma Town Apartments, Jamsil Jugong Apts., Hannam District 4, Hannam Redevelopment District 5, and Bukahyeon District 3—could accelerate. This follows a push to introduce a deemed-approval system under which an approval authority that receives an application for approval of a management-and-disposal plan would be deemed to have approved it if no decision is made within up to 60 days.
According to the National Assembly Bill Information System on the 14th, Hwang Hee of the Democratic Party of Korea introduced a bill on the 8th to amend the Act on the Improvement of Urban Areas and Residential Environments.
The bill’s key provision is that when a project operator applies for approval of a management-and-disposal plan, the approval authority—including a mayor, county head, or district head—would be deemed to have approved it the following day if it fails to decide whether to grant approval within 60 days of receiving the application.
If the bill passes, the project timelines for urban renewal sites waiting for approval at the management-and-disposal stage could be shortened. The management-and-disposal plan is a key procedure that finalizes each association member’s rights value, contribution, and sales plan before the project moves on to relocation and demolition. Delays in administrative processing also push back subsequent schedules.
The urban renewal industry has responded positively. It says administrative agencies need clear processing deadlines because financing costs, service fees, and other project expenses rise as approvals are delayed. According to the Seoul Urban Renewal Information Portal, 90 urban renewal projects in Seoul have received approval for their project implementation plans and are preparing management-and-disposal plan approvals or proceeding with related procedures.
In Seoul, district heads hold the authority to approve project implementation plans and management-and-disposal plans. Observers say that introducing deemed approval could also reduce changes in administrative policy and approval uncertainty resulting from the replacement of elected district heads.
An industry official said, "Sixty days is by no means a short period for reviewing an application. If there is a problem, authorities can request corrections within that period, and continued delays in approval without making any decision need to be prevented."
The official added, "The longer a project takes, the more its costs increase, and those costs ultimately fall on association members. Reducing unnecessary administrative delays alone could lower the financial burden."
However, some have urged caution. Because management-and-disposal plans involve complex interests, including association members’ rights and contributions, critics say it could be problematic to grant automatic approval solely because 60 days have passed, even when additional review is necessary. The method for calculating the processing period when corrections are requested, as well as the legal effect of approval when no decision is made by the deadline, is expected to become a point of contention.
Lee Eun-hyung, a research fellow at the Korea Research Institute for Construction Policy (RICON), said, "Requiring a decision on approval within a set period may be necessary to speed up projects, but deeming an application approved simply because it was not processed within 60 days is a considerably strong measure. Although I agree with the purpose of the legislation, the proposal to extend it to automatic approval requires further discussion."
[email protected] Choi A-young Reporter