South Korea amended the Korea Racing Authority Act on Jun. 20, 2023, adding a minimum age of 21 for electronic betting tickets and allowing the Korea Racing Authority to run a pilot operation of an electronic betting ticket selling system before the amended law takes effect. The amendment, Act No. 19492, was added to a statute first wholly amended by Act No. 4251 on Aug. 1, 19901.
Under the new Article 6-2, the Authority may sell betting tickets in electronic form through information and communications networks at places other than racecourses and off-course betting centers. It must formulate an annual operation plan covering the running of the selling system, user verification, user protection including measures against addiction and excessive immersion, personal information management, and a sound-operation plan, and implement it with approval from the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The same approval applies to changes to important matters in an approved plan1.
Article 6-4 requires anyone who wants to buy an electronic betting ticket to register their name, device and account with the Authority. The following are not eligible to register1:
| Ineligible for registration | Source |
|---|---|
| A person under 21 years of age | 1 |
| A supervisory agency public official in charge of the Authority's affairs | 1 |
| An executive officer or employee of the Authority | 1 |
| A trainer, jockey or groom | 1 |
| A person engaged in holding horse racing, including under contract with the Authority | 1 |
| A person whose registration was revoked less than one year earlier | 1 |
The Authority must revoke a registration obtained by fraud, where a registered device was lent to another person to buy a ticket, where a person borrowed another's registered device to buy a ticket, or for acts prescribed by ministerial decree that substantially harm sound operation. Article 6-6 lists preventive measures including real-name, age and identity verification, warnings, on-screen display of elapsed time and user education. Article 6-7 requires measures against illegal use, including blocking reproduction, modification and transmission of online racing video clips and forestalling similar systems1.
The amendment also provides that, under the amended definitions and Articles 6(1), 6-2 and 6-4 through 6-7, and Article 49, the Authority may conduct a pilot operation of the electronic betting ticket selling system before the Act enters into force. The Act enters into force on the date of its promulgation1.
What it means for players
The change creates a legal route for buying Korean horse racing bets online rather than only at a racecourse or off-course betting center, but only through the Authority's own system and only for registered users aged 21 or over. Anyone under 21 cannot register, and registration is tied to a named person, device and account, so lending or borrowing a registered device is grounds for revocation. Trainers, jockeys, grooms, Authority staff, supervisory officials and people involved in holding races are also barred from registering. The Act states that the Act on Special Cases concerning Regulation and Punishment of Speculative Acts does not apply to the sale of betting tickets1.
What happens next
The Act enters into force on the date of its promulgation, and the pilot operation may run before that date under the listed provisions. The Authority must submit an annual electronic betting ticket operation plan for ministerial approval, and the Minister may order corrective measures, reduce the number of tickets sold or suspend sales for non-compliance, with ministerial approval needed to resume1.
Sources1 sources
- Statutes of the Republic of Korea, elaw.klri.re.kr
