South Korea / MSIT
From 5 November 2026, South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) requires a USB Type-C port on 13 categories of wired-charging devices sold in the country — phones, tablets, laptops, earbuds, cameras, keyboards, mice and more — under Notice No. 2025-56. It is modelled on the same common-charger logic as the EU's Common Charger Directive, but it is a separate national requirement, on a separate timeline, enforced by a separate authority. A product cleared for the EU market is not automatically cleared for Korea's.
Last updated 21 August 2026
On 5 November 2025, the Ministry of Science and ICT issued Notice No. 2025-56, requiring that from 5 November 2026, any device in scope that charges via a wired connection — or charges and transfers data via a wired connection — must be equipped with a USB Type-C interface. The 13 named categories are mobile phones, tablets, digital cameras, headphones, headsets, portable game consoles, portable speakers, e-book readers, keyboards, mice, portable navigation devices, earbuds, and laptops. Annex 1 of the notice specifies the physical dimensions of the required port, aligned with IEC/EN 62680-1-3 — the same base connector standard referenced in the EU's own common-charger rules.
Source: CAICT GMA, "South Korea: MSIT requires the use of USB-C ports for certain mobile devices and smart devices"; Nexus Compliance Solutions, "South Korea Mandates USB Type-C Ports for Electronic Devices".
Korea's approach follows the EU Common Charger Directive's basic idea — standardise wired charging on USB-C to cut e-waste and consumer friction — and even references the same underlying connector standard. But the two are legally independent: different scope boundaries (Korea's 13 categories don't map one-for-one onto the EU's list), a different effective date (5 November 2026 in Korea versus 28 December 2024 / 28 April 2026 in the EU, depending on category), and a different enforcing authority. A device range already re-engineered for EU compliance still needs its own check against Korea's Annex 1 dimensional spec and category scope before going on sale there.
Source: Global Validity, "Korea USB-C Type Receptacle Requirement for Smart Devices".
Any manufacturer or importer placing one of the 13 covered categories on the Korean market — not just phone and laptop makers. The list pulls in accessory and peripheral categories (keyboards, mice, portable speakers, navigation devices) that many compliance teams don't habitually screen against charging-port rules, because in most other markets a charging port isn't a certification gate at all. From 5 November 2026 in Korea, it is.
From 5 November 2026, any wired-charging device in one of 13 named categories sold in South Korea must be equipped with a USB Type-C port. The Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) issued the requirement as Notice No. 2025-56 on 5 November 2025, giving industry a one-year runway to the effective date.
Mobile phones, tablets, digital cameras, headphones, headsets, portable game consoles, portable speakers, e-book readers, keyboards, mice, portable navigation devices, earbuds, and laptops — any of these that charge via a wired connection, or charge and transfer data via a wired connection.
No — it is a separate national requirement under a different authority, on a different timeline, even though it follows the same USB-C-as-common-charger logic as the EU's Common Charger Directive (EU) 2022/2380. A product compliant with the EU rule is not automatically compliant with Korea's, and vice versa; each market needs its own check.
Annex 1 of MSIT Notice No. 2025-56 specifies the physical dimensions of the required USB Type-C interface, aligned with IEC/EN 62680-1-3 — the same base connector standard referenced by the EU's own common-charger rules.
Exporting into Korea alongside the EU or US usually means re-checking a product's charging-port spec market by market rather than assuming one design clears every jurisdiction at once. We fold Korea's USB-C scope and Annex 1 dimensional check into the same market-access review we run for the EU and US requirements, so it's one process per product, not a separate one per country.
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