Restaurants and Internet Cafes Designate Half of Facilities as Smoking-free

Starting next month, smoking will be banned in hospitals, preschools, and elementary, middle and high schools. And game rooms, Internet cafes, comic book rental stores and restaurants of a certain size will be required to designate non-smoking sections within their facilities.

These are included in the revised regulations of the nation’s health promotion law, which will come into force staring April 1st. However, the Ministry of Health and Welfare decided Tuesday to put a grace period to the end of June, so during this period violators will not be punished.

However, starting July, business owners who do not follow the regulations for designation of non-smoking sections or posting of non-smoking signs will be subject to fines of up to 3 million won. And individuals caught smoking in non-smoking sections are subject to a fine of 20,000 to 30,000 won.

According to the revised regulations, a total smoking ban will be enforced in hospitals, childcare facilities, preschools, and elementary, middle and high schools. A total of 85,067 such establishments will be affected by the smoking ban regulations across the nation. This means that existing smoking rooms inside these facilities will be closed, but smoking is allowed outside such as on the roof, on outdoor stairs, and in playgrounds.

Meanwhile, game rooms, Internet cafes, Comic book rental stores, restaurants with an area of more than 150 square meters should designate non-smoking sections within their facilities. A total of 247,083 establishments fall into this category. The establishments should designate half of their facilities as non-smoking areas, and make sure that the non-smoking sections are totally smoke-free by installing walls or screens and ventilators. Smoking areas cannot be designated within offices, bathrooms, hallways, and stairs.

Other facilities that should have designated smoking areas include outdoor sports facilities with over 1,000 seats, such as soccer and baseball stadiums, theaters and performance halls with over 300 seats, college and private institute buildings with a total floor space of more than 1,000 sq. meters, government buildings with a total floor space of more than 1,000 sq. meters, office buildings with a floor space of 3,000 sq. meters, and complex building with a floor space of 2,000 sq. meters.

On the other hand, other areas where smoking is totally banned are passenger waiting rooms in transportation facilities, cabins of ships, train passageways, subway platforms, subway cars, underground subway stations, underground footways, underground shopping centers and elevators.

Sang-Keun Song songmoon@donga.com