1. Reason for revision

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has been implementing the international aviation carbon offset and reduction system since 2021 to measure carbon emissions every year if an aircraft operator's international aviation carbon emissions exceed 10,000 tons a year and to let the aircraft operator purchase or offset emission credits in proportion to the carbon emission increase rate in the global air transportation business as calculated by ICAO.

Therefore, with the establishment of the Act on the Management of International Aviation Carbon Emissions (Law No. 20336, promulgated on February 20, 2024, implemented on August 21, 2024) to satisfy international standards and to offset/reduce carbon emissions systematically in the international air transportation business area of Korea, it is intended to prescribe matters delegated by laws and matters needed for their implementation.

2. Main contents

A. Establishment of basic plan and detailed implementation plan (Article 2 of the Draft)

In order to offset and reduce international aviation carbon emissions systematically, the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport establishes a five-year basic plan with 2026 as the starting year and establishes the detailed implementation plan every year.

B. Designation/Cancellation, etc. of verification institution (Article 3 and Table 1 of the Draft)

Establishing the standards for designating a verification institution to professionally verify the carbon emissions and offset liability fulfillment of the obligators, and the administrative disposition standards for the cancellation of such designations and suspensions of business, etc. by the Minister of Environment.

C. Work standards of the verification institution (Article 4 and Table 2 of the Draft)

Establishing work standards to be met by the verification institution for the professional verification of an obligator’s carbon emissions and offset liability fulfillment

D. Submission and evaluation of the verification result of the verification institution (Article 5 of the Draft)

The verification institution shall submit the results of the verification work to the Minister of Environment for evaluation every six months.

E. Preparation and submission of emission reports and verification reports (Article 6, Table 3, and Table 4 of the Draft)

1) Prescribing the methods for measuring an obligator’s carbon emissions and establishing standards for the verification institution’s verification report on the emissions report.

2) The Minister of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport shall prepare the national carbon emission report based on the submitted emission report and emission verification report and prescribe the deadline for submitting a prepared report to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

F. Special exemption from the fulfillment of international aviation carbon offset obligation (Article 7 and Table 5 of the Draft)

The offset obligation is waived if the total amount of offset obligation during the 3-year fulfillment period is less than 3,000 tons or 3 years have not passed including the first year when the aircraft operator was designated as fulfillment obligator.

G. Preparation and submission of offset obligation fulfillment report and verification report (Article 8, Table 4, and Table 6 of the Draft)

1) Establishing the period that obligators shall satisfy the liability for offset and establishing the standards for verification agencies to prepare verification reports on satisfaction of liability for offset.

2) The Minister of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport shall prepare the national offset obligation report based on the submitted offset obligation fulfillment report and verification report and shall prescribe the deadline for submitting the prepared report to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

H. Delegation and consignment of authority and work (Article 9 of the Draft)

The authority of the Minister of Environment to designate the verification institution is delegated to the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Research under the Ministry of Environment, with part of the work of the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport consigned to the Korea Transportation Safety Authority so that international aviation carbon emission management work is performed professionally.

I. Standards for the imposition of negligence fines (Article 10 and Table 7 of the Draft)

Establishing the standards so that a negligence fine in the range of KRW 10 million or less may be imposed depending on the number of violation acts such as failure to submit emissions reports, offset obligation performance reports, and verification reports within the deadline or failure to store carbon emissions-related data.