The purpose of this Decree is to prescribe matters mandated by the Nursing Act and matters necessary for the enforcement thereof.
| Article 2 (Entrustment of evaluation duties for education and training institutes for assistant nurses) |
| (1) | The Minister of Health and Welfare may entrust the evaluation duties for the designation of education and training institutes for assistant nurses to any of the following institutions or organizations, under the latter part of Article 6 (2) of the Act (hereinafter referred to as the “Act”): |
| 2. | Any other institution or organization publicly notified by the Minister of Health and Welfare, in consideration of its organization, human resources, and expertise necessary to perform the entrusted duties. |
| (2) | If duties are entrusted under paragraph (1), matters necessary for the standards, procedures, and methods of such entrustment shall be determined and publicly notified by the Minister of Health and Welfare. |
| Article 3 (Grounds for cancellation of designation of education and training institutes for assistant nurses) |
“ Ground prescribed by Presidential Decree, such as obtaining the designation by fraud or other improper means” in Article 6 (3) of the Act means any of the following: | 1. | Where it has obtained the designation by fraud or other improper means; |
| 2. | Where it falls short of the designation standards among the matters necessary for the designation and evaluation of training institutions for assistant nurses under Article 6 (4) of the Act; |
| 3. | Where it refuses to perform education and training duties or fails to conduct education and training for at least 3 months, without good cause; |
| 4. | Where it issues a certificate of graduation or certificate of completion by fraud or other improper means; |
| 5. | Where the curriculum and its contents under the main clause, with the exception of the subparagraphs, of Article 6 (1) of the Act violate statutes or regulations or are recognized as making it impracticable to achieve the purpose of designation of the education and training institute for assistant nurses. |
| Article 4 (Scope of national examination) |
| (1) | The national examination for nurses under Article 8 (1) of the Act shall test the knowledge and skills required of a nurse with respect to nursing science and statutes and regulations related to health care and medicine. |
| (2) | The national examination for assistant nurses under Article 8 (1) of the Act shall test the knowledge and skills required of an assistant nurse with respect to nursing science, introduction to health care, and statutes and regulations related to health and medical care. |
| (3) | Matters necessary for the subjects, methods, and criteria for passing the national examinations for nurses and assistant nurses under paragraphs (1) and (2) (hereinafter referred to as “national examinations”), and other matters concerning such examinations shall be prescribed by Decree of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. |
| Article 5 (Administration and public announcement of national examinations) |
| (1) | The Minister of Health and Welfare shall administer the national examination according to the following classifications: |
| 1. | National examination for nurses: At least once a year; |
| 2. | National examination for assistant nurses: At least twice a year. |
| (2) | The Minister of Health and Welfare shall entrust the Korea Health Personnel Licensing Examination Institute under the Korea Health Personnel Licensing Examination Institute Act (hereinafter referred to as the “national examination administration agency”) with the management of national examinations in accordance with Article 8 (2) of the Act. |
| (3) | To administer a national examination, the head of the national examination administration agency shall obtain prior approval from the Minister of Health and Welfare and make a public announcement, at least 90 days before the examination date, of the examination date and time, examination site, subjects, application period, and other matters necessary for the administration of the examination; provided, the examination site may be publicly announced at least 30 days before the examination date after the number of applicants for each region is confirmed. |
| (4) | Notwithstanding paragraph (3), the head of the national examination administration agency may shorten the public announcement period under paragraph (3), if the Minister of Health and Welfare finds it urgently necessary to supplement medical personnel for the protection of public health. |
| Article 6 (Examination committee members) |
The head of the national examination administration agency shall appoint, for each subject of a national examination, persons with expertise in the relevant field as examination committee members whenever a national examination is administered.
| Article 7 (Application for national examinations and announcement of successful candidates) |
| (1) | A person who intends to take a national examination shall submit an application form determined by the head of the national examination administration agency, to the head of the national examination management agency. |
| (2) | The head of the national examination administration agency shall determine the successful candidates and make an announcement thereof. |
| Article 8 (Request for cooperation from relevant institutions) |
To efficiently manage national examinations, the head of the national examination administration agency may, if necessary, request cooperation from the State, local governments, or relevant institutions or organizations, such as by requesting support for securing examination sites or administering the examinations.
| Article 9 (Restrictions on eligibility for national examinations) |
The criteria for restrictions on eligibility for national examinations under Article 9 (3) of the Act shall be as specified in Appendix.
| Article 10 (Conditions for licenses) |
| (1) | The specific regions under in Article 10 (2) of the Act shall be medically underserved areas as determined by the Minister of Health and Welfare, and the specific duties shall refer to the duties of health and medical institutions established and operated by the State or local governments. |
| (2) | A nurse who works in a specific region or performs specific duties under Article 10 (2) of the Act shall be provided with an allowance within the budget. |
| Article 11 (Health care services of nurses) |
“ Health care services prescribed by Presidential Decree” in Article 12 (1) 3 of the Act means the following health care services: | 4. | Other duties prescribed by statutes or regulations as health care services of nurses. |
| Article 12 (Reporting on status and employment situation of nurses) |
| (1) | A nurse shall report their status, employment situation, and other relevant matters to the Minister of Health and Welfare by December 31 of every third year from the date of issuance of their license under Article 10 (1) of the Act (where the license certificate is reissued under Article 39 (2) of the Act, from the date of reissuance) in accordance with Article 17 (1) of the Act; provided, if the nurse has filed a report under Article 2 (1) of the Addenda to the partially-amended Medical Service Act (Act No. 10609), they shall file a report by December 31 of every third year from the date of that report. |
| (2) | The Minister of Health and Welfare shall entrust the Central Nurses Association under Article 18 (1) of the Act (hereinafter referred to as the “Central Nurses Association”) with the task of processing reports under paragraph (1) in accordance with Article 17 (3) of the Act. |
| (3) | Matters necessary for the methods and procedures of the report under paragraph (1) shall be prescribed by Decree of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. |
| Article 13 (Branches of the Central Nurses Association) |
The Central Nurses Association shall establish branches in the Special Metropolitan City, a Metropolitan City, a Special Self-Governing City, a Do, and a Special Self-Governing Province within 3 weeks from the date of completing its registration of establishment under the main clause of Article 18 (4) of the Act; provided, where a branch is established abroad, such branch shall be established within 10 weeks from the date of receiving approval for the amendment of the articles of incorporation regarding such establishment.
| Article 14 (Composition of the ethics committee of the Central Nurses Association) |
| (1) | The ethics committee under Article 18 (6) of the Act (hereafter in this Article through Article 16 and Article 18 referred to as the “ethics committee”) shall be composed of 11 members, including 1 chairperson. |
| (2) | The chairperson of the ethics committee (hereafter in this Article and Article 15 referred to as the “chairperson”) shall be appointed by the president of the Central Nurses Association from among the members of the ethics committee. |
| (3) | The members of the ethics committee shall be appointed by the president of the Central Nurses Association, with due consideration to gender, from among the following persons; provided, at least 4 persons falling under subparagraph 2 shall be included: |
| 1. | A member of the Central Nurses Association with at least 10 years of experience as a nurse; |
| 2. | A person who is not a nurse but has extensive knowledge of and experience in law, health care, media, or consumer rights and interests. |
| (4) | The term of office of each member shall be 3 years and may be renewed only once. |
| Article 15 (Operation of ethics committee) |
| (1) | The ethics committee shall deliberate and resolve on the following matters: |
| 1. | Request for a disposition of suspension of qualification under Article 21 of the Act; |
| 2. | Qualification review and disciplinary action against members of the Central Nurses Association; |
| 3. | Other matters necessary for establishing ethical standards for members, as prescribed by the articles of incorporation of the Central Nurses Association. |
| (2) | Meetings of the ethics committee shall be convened by the chairperson in any of the following cases; in such cases, the chairperson shall notify each member of the date, venue, and agenda of the meeting no later than 7 days before the meeting: |
| 1. | Where the chairperson deems it necessary; |
| 2. | Where requested by the president of the Central Nurses Association; |
| 3. | Where requested by at least 1/3 of the incumbent members. |
| (3) | A quorum for meeting of the ethics committee shall be at least 2/3 of the members and any resolution thereof shall require the concurring vote of at least 2/3 of the members present; provided, the quorum requirements for the matters referred to in paragraph (1) 2 and 3 may be otherwise prescribed by the articles of incorporation of the Central Nurses Association. |
| (4) | If the ethics committee intends to deliberate and resolve on the matters referred to in paragraph (1) 1 and 2, the chairperson shall give a party to the relevant agenda item an opportunity to present their opinion in writing or orally; in such cases, if the opinion is presented orally, the person who made the statement and the gist thereof shall be recorded. |
| (5) | If necessary for expert review of matters under its jurisdiction, the ethics committee may organize and operate expert advisory panels by field in accordance with the standards determined by the Minister of Health and Welfare. |
| (6) | Except as provided in paragraphs (1) through (5), matters necessary for the operation of the ethics committee or the expert advisory panels under paragraph (5) shall be prescribed by the articles of incorporation of the Central Nurses Association. |
| Article 16 (Exclusion of members of ethics committee) |
| (1) | A member of the ethics committee shall be excluded from deliberating and resolving on an agenda item if they fall under any of the following subparagraphs: |
| 1. | Where the member, their spouse, or former spouse is a party to the agenda item or has joint rights or obligations with a party to the agenda item; |
| 2. | Where a member is or was a relative of a party to the agenda item; |
| 3. | Where the member is or was affiliated with an institution to which a party to the agenda item belonged within the past 3 years. |
| (2) | A party to the agenda item may, if there exists any ground for exclusion under the subparagraphs of paragraph (1) or any other circumstance that makes it impracticable to expect a fair deliberation or resolution, file a written request with the ethics committee for the challenge of the relevant member. |
| (3) | Upon receiving a request for challenge under paragraph (2), the ethics committee shall determine whether to grant the request with the attendance of a majority of all incumbent members and the affirmative vote of a majority of the members present. In such cases, the member subject to the request shall not participate in the resolution. |
| (4) | A member of the ethics committee shall recuse themselves from deliberating and making a resolution on an agenda item if they fall under the subparagraphs of paragraph (1) or if they deem that there exists a circumstance in which impartial deliberation cannot reasonably be expected. |
| Article 17 (Application for approval for establishment of the Central Nurses Association) |
To obtain approval for the establishment of the Central Nurses Association under Article 19 (1) of the Act, the following documents shall be submitted to the Minister of Health and Welfare: | 1. | The articles of incorporation; |
| 3. | The statement of assets; |
| 4. | The establishment resolution; |
| 5. | Documents regarding the particulars of the election of the founding representative; |
| 6. | Written consents of inauguration and resumes of executive officers. |
| Article 18 (Matters to be stated in articles of incorporation of the Central Nurses Association) |
Matters that shall be stated in the articles of incorporation of the Central Nurses Association under Article 19 (2) of the Act shall be as follows: | 3. | Seats of the central association, branches, sub-branches; |
| 4. | Properties or accounting and other matters regarding its management and operation; |
| 5. | Matters regarding the appointment of executive officers; |
| 6. | Matters regarding qualifications for and disciplinary actions against members; |
| 7. | Matters regarding modification of the articles of incorporation; |
| 8. | Matters regarding the method of public announcement; |
| 9. | Matters regarding the operation of the ethics committee. |
| Article 19 (Application for approval of amendment to articles of incorporation of the Central Nurses Association) |
To obtain approval for amending the articles of incorporation of the Central Nurses Association under Article 19 (3) of the Act, the following documents shall be submitted to the Minister of Health and Welfare: | 1. | Documents stating the details and reasons of the modification of the articles of incorporation; |
| 2. | Minutes of the meetings regarding the modification of the articles of incorporation; |
| 3. | A comparative table of the amended and previous articles and other reference materials. |
| Article 20 (Establishment of the Assistant Nurses Association) |
| (1) | A person who intends to establish the Assistant Nurses Association under Article 20 (1) of the Act shall obtain approval from the Minister of Health and Welfare by submitting the articles of incorporation, a business plan, and other documents prescribed by Decree of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. |
| (2) | With respect to the composition and operation of the ethics committee of the Assistant Nurses Association under Article 20 (5) of the Act, Articles 14 through 16 shall apply mutatis mutandis. In such cases, “Central Nurses Association” shall be construed as “Assistant Nurses Association,” and “nurse” as “assistant nurse.” |
| Article 21 (Request for suspension of qualification) |
Where the president of the Central Nurses Association or the president of the Assistant Nurses Association intends to request a disposition of suspension of qualification for a nurse or assistant nurse under Article 21 of the Act, they shall submit to the Minister of Health and Welfare a document stating the date and venue of the relevant ethics committee meeting, the grounds and reasons for the request, and other related details.
| Article 22 (Entrustment of operation of the Nursing Workforce Support Center) |
| (1) | The Minister of Health and Welfare may entrust the operation of the Nursing Workforce Support Center under Article 31 (1) (hereinafter referred to as the “Nursing Workforce Support Center”) to any of the following institutions or organizations, under paragraph (2) of that Article: |
| 1. | The Central Nurses Association or its branch; |
| 3. | Any other institution or organization publicly notified by the Minister of Health and Welfare in consideration of its organization, human resources, and expertise necessary to perform the entrusted duties. |
| (2) | If duties are entrusted under paragraph (1), matters necessary for the standards, procedures, and methods of such entrustment shall be determined and publicly notified by the Minister of Health and Welfare. |
| Article 23 (Formulation and implementation of nursing policy implementation plans) |
| (1) | The Minister of Health and Welfare shall prepare guidelines for the formulation of nursing policy implementation plans under Article 35 (1) of the Act (hereafter in this Article referred to as “implementation plans”) and notify the heads of relevant central administrative agencies and the Mayors/Do Governors thereof by October 31 each year. |
| (2) | The heads of relevant central administrative agencies and the Mayors/Do Governors shall formulate implementation plans for the following year in accordance with the formulation guidelines under paragraph (1) and submit them to the Minister of Health and Welfare by December 31 each year. |
| (3) | The heads of relevant central administrative agencies and the Mayors/Do Governors shall submit the performance results of the previous year's implementation plan to the Minister of Health and Welfare by March 31 each year under Article 35 (2) of the Act. |
| (4) | The Minister of Health and Welfare shall evaluate the performance results submitted under paragraph (3) and notify the heads of relevant central administrative agencies and the Mayors/Do Governors of the results by September 30 each year. |
| (5) | The heads of relevant central administrative agencies and the Mayors/Do Governors shall reflect the evaluation results notified under paragraph (4) in the implementation plan for the following year, unless there is good cause. |
| Article 24 (Training programs for reissuance of licenses) |
| (1) | The content and duration of training programs under the main clause of Article 39 (2) of the Act (hereafter in this Article referred to as “training programs”) shall be classified as follows: |
a } Understanding of patient rights;
b } Roles and ethics of medical personnel and workers in the medical field;
c } Understanding of statutes and regulations related to medical care and nursing;
d } Other content necessary to maintain order in health and medical care, as publicly notified by the Minister of Health and Welfare;
| 2. | Duration of training: Not less than 40 hours. |
| (2) | A training program shall be administered by an institution or organization designated and publicly notified by the Minister of Health and Welfare from among the following institutions or organizations (hereafter in this Article referred to as the “training program implementing institution”): |
| 2. | The Central Nurses Association or the Assistant Nurses Association; |
| 3. | Any other institution or organization related to bioethics or medical ethics, as designated and publicly notified by the Minister of Health and Welfare. |
| (3) | The cost of a training program shall be borne by the person completing the program. |
| (4) | The head of a training program implementing institution shall issue a certificate of completion to a person who has completed the training program, and submit the results of the program’s implementation to the Minister of Health and Welfare within 1 month from the date of completion of the program. |
| (5) | The head of a training program implementing institution shall, before implementing a training program, determine the details regarding the content, cost, and other related matters of the training program and obtain approval thereof from the Minister of Health and Welfare. The same shall apply where they intend to change any of the approved matters. |
| Article 25 (Entrustment of duties) |
| (1) | The Minister of Health and Welfare may entrust the following duties to the institutions or organizations under paragraph (2) in accordance with Article 45 (2) of the Act: |
| 1. | Receiving applications for the designation of education and training institutes for assistant nurses under the former part of Article 6 (2) of the Act and issuing certificates of designation (referring to certificates in the name of the Minister of Health and Welfare); |
| 2. | Continuing education for assistant nurses under Article 16 (2) of the Act; |
| 3. | Receiving reports on the status and employment situation of assistant nurses under Article 17 (4) of the Act. |
| (2) | Institutions or organizations eligible to be entrusted with part of the Minister’s duties under Article 45 (2) of the Act shall be as follows: |
| 1. | The Nursing Assistants Association; |
| 3. | Any other institution or organization publicly notified by the Minister of Health and Welfare in consideration of its organization, human resources, and expertise necessary to perform the entrusted duties (limited to the matters regarding continuing education for assistant nurses under Article 16 (2) of the Act). |
| (3) | The Minister of Health and Welfare may, in accordance with Article 45 (2) of the Act, entrust the following institutions or organizations with the management of requirements for nurses to perform medical support duties under Article 14 (1) of the Act; the designation and evaluation of training course operating institutions under Article 14 (2) of the Act; and the verification of compliance with the standards, procedures, and requirements for hospital-level medical institutions: |
| 2. | Any other institution or organization publicly notified by the Minister of Health and Welfare in consideration of its organization, human resources, and expertise necessary to perform the entrusted duties. |
| (4) | The Minister of Health and Welfare may entrust human rights violation prevention training under Article 27 (3) of the Act to any of the following institutions or organizations, in accordance with Article 45 (2) of the Act: |
| 1. | The Central Nurses Association or its branch; |
| 5. | Any other institution or organization publicly notified by the Minister of Health and Welfare in consideration of its organization, human resources, and expertise necessary to perform the entrusted duties. |
| (5) | Where the Minister of Health and Welfare entrusts duties under paragraphs (1) through (4), matters necessary for the standards, procedures, and methods of such entrustment shall be determined and publicly notified by the Minister of Health and Welfare. |
[Enforcement Date]
| Article 26 (Processing of sensitive information and personally identifiable information) |
The Minister of Health and Welfare (including any person entrusted with the Minister’s duties under the latter part of Article 6 (2), Article 8 (2), or Article 45 (2) of the Act) and the head of a Si/Gun/Gu (referring to the head of an autonomous Gu) may, if unavoidable, process health-related information under Article 23 of the Personal Information Protection Act, criminal record information under subparagraph 2 of Article 18 of the Enforcement Decree of that Act, and data including resident registration numbers or foreign registration numbers under subparagraph 1 or 4 of Article 19 of that Decree to perform the following business affairs; provided, health-related information and criminal record information shall be excluded for the business affairs specified in subparagraphs 7 and 9: | 1. | Business affairs related to nursing licenses under Article 4 of the Act; |
| 2. | Business affairs related to the recognition of qualification for advanced practice nurses under Article 5 of the Act; |
| 3. | Business affairs related to the recognition of qualification for assistant nurses under Article 6 of the Act; |
| 4. | Business affairs related to the management of national examinations under Article 8 of the Act; |
| 5. | Business affairs related to the restriction of eligibility to take the national examination under Article 9 of the Act; |
| 6. | Business affairs related to the issuance of license certificates or qualification certificates under Article 10 of the Act; |
| 7. | Business affairs related to the management of the eligibility requirements for nursing support duties under Article 14 (1) of the Act; |
| 8. | Business affairs related to the cancellation and reissuance of licenses or qualifications under Article 39 of the Act; |
| 9. | Business affairs related to corrective orders under Article 42 of the Act. |
ADDENDA <Presidential Decree No. 35597, Jun. 20, 2025>
Article 1 (Enforcement date)
This Decree shall enter into force on June 21 2025; provided, as for the matters regarding the entrustment of duties related to the designation and evaluation of training course operating institutions under Article 14 (2) of the Act, among Article 25 (3), this Decree shall begin to apply on the date prescribed by Decree of the Ministry of Health and Welfare within 3 years from June 21 2025. Article 2 (Transitional measures concerning training program implementing institutions for reissuance of licenses)
Article 3 (Transitional measures concerning entrusted institutions)
Article 5 (Relationship to other statutes or regulations)
Where any other statutes or regulations cite the previous Enforcement Decree of the Medical Service Act or any provisions thereof at the time this Decree enters into force, such statutes or regulations shall be deemed to cite this Decree or the corresponding provisions of this Decree in lieu thereof.