Fail to move in within six months and the loan is called in
A mortgage in the capital area or a regulated zone requires you to register residence within six months of drawdown. The issue here is eligibility, not money.
Conditions used in the video
- Who it covers
- mortgages in the capital area and regulated zones
- Deadline
- six months from drawdown
- Source
- the 6.27 measures
- In force
- 28 June 2025
Results
- Deadline to move in
- 6 months
- On breach
- immediate recall of the loan
- Misuse of funds · first offence
- 3 years, all lenders
- Misuse of funds · second offence
- 10 years, all lenders
- Household loan covenant breaches, H2 2025
- 2,982 cases
- └ of which move-in covenant
- 20 cases
At a glance
Of 2,982 cases, almost all were breaches of the bar on buying an additional home. Move-in breaches numbered 20.
- Bar on buying an additional home2,945 cases
- Disposal covenant17 cases
- Move-in covenant20 cases
what this video is about
The ban widens from business loans at that one lender to every loan across all lenders.
- First offence3 years
- Second offence10 years
Why it works this way
Take a mortgage in the capital area or a regulated zone and one more condition attaches: you must register residence at that home within six months of drawdown. The obligation does not end when the money arrives. A condition remains, to be checked six months later.
The purpose is plain. It targets buying a home with a tenant's deposit already in place, so-called gap investment. Lending goes only to people who will actually live there.
Drawdown is the start, not the end.
- Loan drawn down
- Within six monthsregister residence
- If notloan called in
Recall ignores the remaining term. Borrow over 30 years and a recall notice still means repaying the whole balance then.
Miss it and the loan becomes immediately repayable. This is where the weight of the rule sits. Borrow ₩500M over 30 years and a recall notice means finding ₩500M at that moment, whatever the remaining term. What you were paying monthly comes back as one lump.
One distinction needs care. The 3-year and 10-year lending bans people often quote are the sanction for misusing business loan funds. They take effect after each financial sector amends its code during Q2 2026: a first offence bars all lending across all lenders for three years, a second for ten. Whether that same period attaches to a breach of the move-in covenant itself is not established in the published material.
The case numbers deserve the same care. Of 2,982 household loan covenant breaches in H2 2025, the great majority (2,945) were breaches of the bar on buying an additional home. Move-in breaches numbered 20 and disposal covenant breaches 17. Nothing like 3,000 cases were move-in breaches.
Two exceptions appeared in 2026. First, where a multi-home owner sells a tenanted home to someone owning no home. The deadline is then deferred to the later of six months from drawdown and one month from the end of the lease, because you cannot be told to move in while a tenant is still there.
Deferred to whichever of the two dates falls later.
- Drawdown + 6 months
- End of lease + 1 month
- Whichever is later
Source: the supplementary measure of 12 February 2026. A late-ending lease pushes the deadline back accordingly.
Second, a mortgage taken to buy a home in a land transaction permission zone. There the move-in duty does not apply at all. That is the measure of 12 May 2026.
What it comes down to is one question: when can you actually move in? If there is a tenant, establish the end date of the lease and whether an exception applies, and do it before you sign. After the balance is paid there is no going back.
The legal basis
Drawn from government announcements and the statutes themselves as primary sources, covering only the relevant part.
금융위원회 「가계부채 관리 강화 방안」 (the 6.27 measures)
In force 28 June 2025
A mortgage in the capital area or a regulated zone requires residence to be registered within six months of drawdown. Breach results in recall of the loan and referral to the investigating authorities.
What this means
Approval is not the end of it. A condition remains to be checked six months later, and failing it means repaying the whole balance whatever the remaining term.
Supplementary measure on the move-in duty
In force 12 February 2026
Where a multi-home owner sells a tenanted home to a person owning no home, the deadline is deferred to the later of six months from drawdown and one month from the end of the lease.
What this means
Buying a home with a tenant in place pushes the deadline out to match the end of the lease. Establish that date before signing.
Measure on homes subject to land transaction permission
In force 12 May 2026
The move-in duty does not apply to a mortgage taken for the purpose of buying a home subject to land transaction permission.
What this means
Property in a permission zone is already subject to its own occupancy rules, so the move-in duty is not applied on top.
Tougher sanctions for breaching lending rules (framed around misuse of funds)
In force after each financial sector amends its code during Q2 2026
Where business loan funds are found to have been misused, the ban on new lending widens from business loans at that lender to every loan across all lenders. The period rises from one year to three on a first offence, and from five to ten on a second.
What this means
This sanction is framed around misuse of funds. Whether the same period applies to a breach of the move-in covenant is not established in the published material, so it is not asserted here.
Run it on your own numbers
The calculator opens with these conditions already filled in. Change the figures and your own case comes straight out.
Open the Mortgage Limit Calculator
Frequently asked
From when do the six months run?
From drawdown, meaning the day the money leaves the lender, not the contract date or the balance payment date. Know that date precisely.
I bought a home with a tenant in it. What now?
If a multi-home owner sold a tenanted home to someone owning no home, the supplementary measure of 12 February 2026 defers the deadline to the later of drawdown + 6 months and the end of the lease + 1 month. Confirm with your lender whether you qualify.
Can I register residence without actually living there?
It is not advisable. Residence registration presupposes actually living there, and a confirmed breach can lead to recall of the loan and referral to the investigating authorities. Going through the motions is risky.
What exactly happens if I am caught?
Immediate recall of the loan and referral to the investigating authorities are the stated consequences. Whether a separate lending ban also attaches can vary by case, so it is not asserted here. What the published material establishes as 3 and 10 years is the sanction for misusing business loan funds.
Are the 2,982 cases all move-in breaches?
No. That is the total for household loan covenant breaches, of which 20 were move-in breaches. Most (2,945) were breaches of the bar on buying an additional home. The chart above sets out the breakdown.
Results are estimates based on the inputs and on the rules as at the stated date. They may differ from a lender's actual assessment, and the rules change often. Take professional advice before any decision that matters.