South Korea: courts will be able to ban animal abusers from keeping pets for up to five years — what else is changing and how it works in Europe

What Korea has decided

On 26 October 2026 South Korea's Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced amendments to the Animal Protection Act. They will take effect in October 2027. The most notable change is that courts will be able to ban people convicted of serious animal cruelty from keeping animals for up to five years. The amendments also cover the seizure of animals, rules on their care, licences for breeders, and pet shops that pass themselves off as shelters.

The amendments reflect long-standing requests from animal protection organisations.

Lee Yong-jik, director of the ministry's animal welfare policy division

According to Lee Yong-jik, consultations with experts and other ministries made it possible to prepare the law earlier than planned. The year before it takes effect is needed to draft the implementing regulations and give owners, breeders and local authorities time to prepare.

The ban on keeping animals

A court will be able to ban a person convicted of serious animal cruelty from keeping animals for up to five years. Such people will also be restricted from taking animals from local authorities — for example from municipal shelters. This closes a loophole that allowed someone punished for cruelty simply to get a new animal. Animal welfare campaigners in many countries say that repeat cases are the worst: a person who has once been cruel to an animal often does it again. Research also shows a link between animal cruelty and violence against people, which is why such cases are increasingly taken seriously.

Animals during court proceedings

Animals whose owners are charged with cruelty will be able to remain under the authorities' protection until the final court ruling. For the animal this can mean rescue: court cases sometimes last for months. Previously an animal sometimes had to be returned to its owner while proceedings were under way. Local authorities will also be able to take into care animals left unattended after natural disasters, or when the owner has died or gone missing.

What counts as a breach of care

The amendments introduce fines of up to 1 million won, about 760 dollars, for breaching basic care requirements. Examples include:

• keeping a dog on a tether shorter than two metres;
• not providing shelter from extreme heat and cold.

This matters particularly in Korea, where in many rural areas dogs are traditionally kept on a short chain in the yard. Such rules move "poor care" from the realm of morality into the realm of law, where a breach can lead to a fine. In many European countries permanently tethering dogs is also banned or strictly limited: a dog must be given exercise, shelter and company.

Abandoned at the clinic — still abandoned

If an owner does not collect an animal from a boarding facility or veterinary clinic, it will be treated as abandonment. Vets and boarding kennel owners in many countries know this problem: the owner leaves the animal for treatment or while on holiday and never comes back, and the clinic has to feed, treat and rehome it at its own expense. The new rule will make it possible to punish such behaviour. For owners it is a reminder of something simple: if you temporarily cannot collect your animal — because of illness, a move or money — tell the clinic or kennel honestly and look for a solution together. Many shelters and organisations help rehome an animal if its owner cannot care for it.

Breeders and "fake shelters"

Breeders will have to renew their licence every five years, and renewal will depend on an inspection of their premises and staff. In addition, pet shops that pass themselves off as shelters will no longer be able to use names and advertising that give the impression of an animal shelter. Under the guise of a "shelter", such shops sometimes sell animals for money while buyers think they are rescuing them. Inspecting breeders every five years should weed out puppy and kitten "farms" where animals are kept in cramped conditions and bred without rest or veterinary oversight. Europe knows similar problems too — from backyard breeders to the illegal online puppy trade.

Dangerous dogs and bites

The amendments also affect dogs that the law classes as dangerous. Older or sick dogs in this category may be exempted from mandatory neutering and temperament testing, but restrictions on breeding and on leaving a defined area will apply to them. Breaches will carry fines of up to 5 million won. Local authorities will also be able to enter bite incidents in dogs' registration records. This will help show which dogs have already bitten people or other animals and allow timely action — for example requiring training or special housing conditions.

Why this matters for Korea

Attitudes to animals in South Korea have changed markedly in recent years. More and more families keep dogs and cats, the market for veterinary services and pet insurance is growing, and animal protection campaigners are pushing for stricter laws. One of the most prominent decisions of recent years is the law banning the breeding and slaughter of dogs for meat, which comes fully into force in February 2027. The current amendments continue this line: from banning the cruellest practices to setting requirements for everyday care. Korean vets and campaigners note that the very idea of a dog is changing too: from a "guard in the yard" it is increasingly becoming a member of the family who lives in the house.

Why cruelty is hard to prove

Cruelty is not just beatings. Far more often animals suffer from indifference: they are not fed or treated, and are kept in filth, in the cold or heat, on a chain that is too short. This "quiet" cruelty is hard to prove: the animal has no voice, and the owner can always say that "it has always been like this". That is why laws that spell out minimum care requirements — the length of a tether, shelter — help animal welfare campaigners and inspectors.

Vets play an important role. They are the first to see signs of injury, emaciation and neglected disease. In many countries vets are allowed, and sometimes expressly required, to report suspected cruelty, and their findings often become the key evidence in court.

What this means for Europe

Much of what is new in Korea will be familiar to owners in Europe: similar rules already apply here. For example:

• in Germany a court or the veterinary authority can ban a person from keeping animals if they have been cruel to them or failed to provide proper conditions;
• in the United Kingdom courts can disqualify people convicted of cruelty from keeping animals — for a fixed period or for life;
• in Sweden a ban on keeping animals is issued by the county administrative board if a person has seriously breached the animal welfare law;
• in France a court can ban a person from keeping animals as an additional penalty.

Requirements for breeders will soon be tightened at EU level too: in 2026 the EU adopted its first common regulation on the welfare and traceability of dogs and cats. The regulation explicitly targets both illegal animal trade and the sale of puppies and kittens under the guise of "rescue". It introduces common requirements for breeders, sellers, shelters and online platforms, as well as compulsory registration of animals — with transition periods of several years.

What to do if you witness cruelty

The same rule applies in every country: it is better to report animal cruelty than to stay silent.

• Write down what you saw: the date, time, address and the animal's condition; if it is safe to do so, take a photo or video.
• Report it to the veterinary or animal welfare service in your town or region, and to the police if there is an immediate threat.
• Do not intervene by force or take the animal away yourself: this can be dangerous both for you and for the case.
• If an animal has been abandoned in a flat or a yard, tell the neighbours and the building's management company — they often know how to contact the owner.

If you are a vet or work with animals, find out how suspected cruelty is reported in your country: there are often special forms or veterinary service hotlines.

What happens next

Before the amendments take effect, the ministry will prepare the implementing regulations and procedures for applying the new rules. Animal protection campaigners in Korea hope the courts will make active use of the new ban. And for animal owners around the world, this story is a reminder of something simple: caring for a pet is not only love but also a responsibility that is increasingly written into law. The more clearly a law describes what counts as proper care, the easier it is to protect animals that do not have caring owners.