- Introduction of price disclosure obligations for marriage services and yoga/pilates -
- Health clubs, yoga, and pilates businesses must also disclose “insurance subscription status” -
The Korea Fair Trade Commission (Chairman Han Ki-jeong, hereinafter referred to as “KFTC”) has prepared an amendment to the Guidelines on Important Advertising Matters (hereinafter “Important Information Disclosure Guidelines”), which require the disclosure and advertisement of information that could affect consumers’ rational purchase decisions. The amendment will be open for public comment from August 29 to September 18.
The KFTC introduced this amendment to strengthen information disclosure obligations for sports facilities in related industries and marriage service businesses, which have frequently caused consumer harm due to insufficient information provision but remained in a regulatory blind spot. The aim is to help consumers make rational choices and prevent damage in advance.
Key changes in the amendment are as follows:
- Marriage service businesses (wedding halls and wedding planning agencies) will be required to disclose in advance (display) detailed information on fee structures and refund policies.
- Yoga and pilates businesses will be required to display prices and related information.
- Health clubs, yoga, and pilates businesses will be required to disclose whether they have subscribed to guarantee insurance.
More specifically, operators of wedding halls or wedding planning agencies must publish on their websites or on the Consumer Price Information Portal (www.price.go.kr), as well as on the cover of contracts, detailed information such as service items (basic and optional), prices, penalty fees, and refund policies. In cases where a wedding planning agency provides services through partner companies, it must disclose important information for each partner. To support this, the KFTC has prepared and included in the amendment a “model disclosure template” to help businesses properly provide all required information.
A wedding planning agency refers to a business entrusted by consumers to handle all aspects of wedding preparation, including photography (studio), rentals (dress), and beauty (make-up).
The Consumer Price Information Portal is operated by the Korea Consumer Agency, and a dedicated section for marriage service providers to disclose prices and key information will be added within the year.
Consumers have long expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of sufficient prior information about basic and optional services and their costs when planning weddings. This has often forced engaged couples to sign so-called “blind contracts” when purchasing package deals (studio, dress, make-up), resulting in unexpected additional costs. The introduction of mandatory disclosure of important marriage service information is expected to enhance cost predictability and support rational decision-making by engaged couples.
※ On August 18, the KFTC held a meeting with members of the Korea Wedding Hall Association and major wedding planning agencies to collect opinions on the introduction of this information disclosure obligation.
Second, yoga and pilates businesses must display the specific content of services, fee structures (basic and additional costs), and refund standards for early termination, both in postings at the place of business and in customer registration forms. The same information must also be included in advertisements.
Yoga and pilates typically operate on a prepayment model, where customers pay months in advance for services to be delivered later. This structure has led to frequent consumer disputes regarding contract terms and early termination refunds. Since these businesses are classified as free industries outside the scope of laws such as the Installation and Use of Sports Facilities Act, there has been limited oversight. To address this vulnerability, the amendment extends the price disclosure system applied to health clubs to yoga and pilates.
Between 2021 and 2024, the Korea Consumer Agency received 11,637 consumer complaints related to health clubs and 4,152 related to yoga and pilates.
Third, health clubs, yoga, and pilates businesses will be required to disclose whether they are subscribed to guarantee insurance. If they are, they must also disclose details such as the insurer, coverage period, and coverage amount.
This requirement addresses cases where sudden closure or disappearance (“fly-by-night” shutdowns) of such businesses has left consumers unable to reclaim prepaid fees. Disclosure of guarantee insurance information will help prevent such harm and allow consumers to choose safer businesses with confidence.
In addition, the amendment updates the names of laws and article numbers to reflect recent legislative changes.
Through this revision of the Important Information Disclosure Guidelines, service and price information as well as refund standards for previously unregulated sectors—such as yoga, pilates, and marriage services—will be made public. This will help prevent consumer harm caused by “blind contracts” or “fly-by-night” operators, while also promoting the sound development of these markets based on increased consumer trust.
The KFTC plans to finalize and implement the amendment after reviewing stakeholder and government agency feedback collected during the administrative notice period and following a resolution at the KFTC General Meeting.