South Korea to begin relocating state institutions from capital region in 2027
South Korea has announced a plan to relocate the National Assembly, ministries and state institutions outside the Seoul Capital Area. The government links the decision to President Lee Jae-myung’s administration’s policy of balanced regional development, Korea Herald reports.
Plans for Sejong
Prime Minister Han Seong-suk said that most of the 350 government agencies located in the Seoul Capital Area will begin relocating outside it in 2027. According to her, exceptions will be minimal.
The relocation will take place alongside plans to complete construction of a presidential office by 2029 and a parliament building by 2033 in Sejong, which the source describes as the country’s de facto administrative capital.
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Agency mergers and ministry relocations
The government is to present a more detailed plan for relocating state institutions in the fourth quarter of 2026. The process will be combined with mergers of government agencies, which are expected to reduce their number by 109.
Interior Minister Yoon Ho-jung said that the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, which are located in the Seoul Capital Area, will begin the procedure to relocate to Sejong in 2027 through legislative amendments. The headquarters of the national police and the prosecution service are also to be relocated after construction is completed.
