Every winter the carbon monoxide alarm comes up again, and the phrase “it's mandatory now” tends to come with it.
So we opened the notice itself — Korea's National Fire Agency standard, “Fire Safety Performance Standard for Gas Leak Detectors (NFPC 206)” (NFA Notice 2022-50, in force 1 December 2022). Reading the articles turned up three places where the text and the common belief part ways.
1. Is it actually mandatory. A carbon monoxide alarm is not mandatory. Within the same National Fire Agency notice (NFPC 206) the verbs differ — article 4 on flammable gas detectors says “shall install”, article 5 on CO alarms says “where installed … may be installed.”
2. Does it cover my home. Homes are not on the list of covered buildings. The standard applies to designated fire-safety buildings, and ordinary housing is not among them — which is where “it's mandatory now” parts company with the text.
3. So what do you do. Not mandatory is not the same as not needed — the notice records why the standard was written, an automatic gas shut-off device counts instead, and the distances and heights it does fix are set out below.
The first thing we noticed was a verb.
Article 4 (Flammable gas detector) (1) … shall install the detector near the gas appliance.
Article 5 (Carbon monoxide detector) (1) Where a carbon monoxide detector is installed, it may be installed near the gas appliance.
Two neighbouring articles in the same notice, and the verbs differ.
“Shall” against “may”
| Point of comparison | Art. 4 Flammable gas detector | Art. 5 Carbon monoxide detector |
|---|---|---|
| Verb in paragraph 1 | “shall install” | “where installed … may be installed” |
| Distance from the appliance | within 8 metres in a straight line (4 metres for gas heavier than air), at least one unit | no distance is given |
| Split-type sensor height | 0.3 m or less from ceiling to the bottom of the sensor (for heavier gas, 0.3 m or less from the floor to its top) | “installed taking into account the distance from the ceiling to the bottom of the sensor” — no figure at all |
| Standalone type height | 0.3 m or less from the ceiling | 0.3 m or less (the same) |
| Maker's specification | not addressed | Para. 5: where performance is recognised, installation may follow the maker's specification |
Paragraph 3 of Article 5 stands out most. Where Article 4 pins the same point down as “0.3 metres or less,” Article 5 says only “taking the distance into account” — with no number. In its place, paragraph 5 opens the door to the maker's own specification, but only “where a separate installation method securing the performance has been recognised.”
Does it cover my home
What the standard actually applies to matters more than the wording. The regulatory impact assessment written when the notice was drafted lists the covered buildings like this — and each entry applies only where a gas installation is present.
| Buildings listed in the impact assessment | How to read it |
|---|---|
| Lodging facilities · facilities for the elderly and children · retail and business facilities | Lodging facilities — pensions and motels — come first |
| Youth facilities among educational and research facilities · medical facilities · cultural, assembly and sports facilities | Places where numbers of people gather |
| Ordinary homes | Not on this list |
That answers the question most people are actually asking. What this notice aims at is lodging and similar designated fire-safety buildings, not the flat or house you live in.
Two qualifications, stated plainly.
(1) The list above comes from the drafting-stage document. Article 2 of the notice in force points instead to Table 4, item 2 (ch) of the Enforcement Decree of the Fire Facilities Installation and Management Act, and we did not open that table to check it against the list.
(2) “The law does not require it” and “you do not need it” are different statements. The drafting history below shows why.
Why was the standard written
The “background” field of the regulatory impact assessment states the reason directly.
“… covered buildings existed but there was no detailed installation standard, so one is set out; and prompted by the Gangneung pension gas poisoning incident, a fire safety standard for gas leak detectors setting out the installation method and location for carbon monoxide detectors is needed to prevent accidents from carbon monoxide leaks.”
— National Fire Agency, regulatory impact assessment for the Gas Leak Detector Fire Safety Standard, “background”
Coverage existed but the standard did not is the first reason; a specific accident is the second. It is unusual for a regulatory document to name an incident outright.
The same document's “expected effect” field splits in two as well — “to prevent gas explosion or fire, or to prevent poisoning accidents from toxic gas in advance.” In other words, one standard aimed at two different harms: burning and poisoning.
What if there is an automatic shut-off device
The proviso to Article 2 (Scope) is what matters in practice.
“Provided that, where a building is subject to an automatic gas shut-off device or a gas leak detector under the Safety Control and Business of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Act or the Urban Gas Business Act and has installed one in conformity with that Act, it shall be deemed to conform to this standard.”
— NFPC 206, Article 2, proviso
So a building that already meets the gas legislation with a shut-off device or detector does not have to be brought separately into line with this notice. But which buildings fall under that legislation is not something this notice decides.
What the notice does fix as numbers
| Item | The value in the notice | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Alarm sound level | 70 dB or more at 1 metre from the receiver | Arts. 4 and 5 alike |
| Receiver switch height | 0.8 m to 1.5 m above the floor | Arts. 4 and 5 alike |
| Emergency contact numbers | A table of them shall be kept on site | Arts. 4 and 5 alike |
| Where not to install | Anywhere other than places hard to detect leaking gas effectively — the text names spots exposed to outside air currents and spots easily reached by appliance exhaust | Art. 6 |
| Power | A battery or an indoor AC mains circuit, supplied at all times | Art. 7 |
| Review cycle | Every 3 years, from 1 January 2023 | Art. 8 |
Article 6 is probably the one most often broken in practice — right beside a vent, or near a boiler flue, is exactly the spot the text tells you to avoid. For accidents at home generally, see home emergencies; when you cannot tell whether a hospital visit is needed, emergency room or clinic covers that. For winter heating costs, the electricity bill calculator is the companion piece.
Questions people ask
So I don't have to put one in my home?
What is established is “this notice does not compel installation in a home,” and not “you do not need one.” Bear in mind that the drafting reason was a real poisoning incident, and read it alongside the US CDC guidance set out in the home emergencies article.
Is it mandatory for pensions and motels?
The first line of the impact assessment's list is lodging facilities (where a gas installation is present). But the verb in Article 5(1) is still “may install” for those buildings too — being covered by the gas leak detector requirement and being compelled to fit a carbon monoxide detector specifically read, on this text, as two different things. Without the enforcement decree table in hand we go no further than that.
Ceiling or floor?
It reverses with the gas. For flammable gas the rule is 0.3 m or less below the ceiling, but with gas heavier than air (LPG and the like) it flips to 0.3 m or less above the floor. For carbon monoxide, only the standalone type carries “0.3 m or less from the ceiling”; the split type has no figure.
What if a gas shut-off device is already fitted?
Under the proviso to Article 2, an installation conforming to the LPG or urban gas legislation is deemed to conform to this standard.
Sources
- National Fire Agency notice — Fire Safety Performance Standard for Gas Leak Detectors (NFPC 206) (NFA Notice 2022-50, fully amended 25 Nov 2022, in force 1 Dec 2022; checked August 2026). Source for the Article 2 proviso, the Article 3(2) definition of a carbon monoxide detector, Article 4(1)'s “shall install” with the 8-metre (4-metre) and 0.3-metre figures, Article 5(1)'s “where installed … may be installed” and 5(3)'s “taking the distance into account,” 5(5) on the maker's specification, the 70 dB, 0.8–1.5 m and emergency contact table requirements, Article 6 on location, Article 7 on power and Article 8's three-year review.
- National Fire Agency — regulatory impact assessment for the Gas Leak Detector Fire Safety Standard (Fire Analysis and Systems Division, +82-44-205-7531). Source for the background statement quoted above, the expected-effect wording, and the list of covered buildings. It is a document file attached to the agency's public notice, and we could not obtain a web address for it, so no link is given.
- Fire Facilities Installation and Management Act — Korean Law Information Center. Where we located the delegating provision named in Article 1 (Art. 2(1)6(a)) and the enforcement decree table that Article 2 points to.
- Checked directly. “Article 4 says shall, Article 5 says may” and “Article 5 gives no distance” are our comparison of the two articles set side by side; the notice does not explain the difference.
Where to check further
- Korean certification and performance standards for household CO alarms. This notice covers designated fire-safety buildings, not domestic products — Korea Fire Institute (KFI) certification is the practical test when choosing one.
- Where to place one in a home with a boiler. The notice sets no distance for CO alarms — the Korea Gas Safety Corporation (1544-4500) advises on domestic placement and runs free safety inspections.
- Separate rules for pensions and campsites. Incidents recur there, but this notice alone does not settle it — your local fire station and the accommodation safety rules issued by the ministry and local government carry separate provisions.
As of August 2026. The article text and every figure come from the NFPC 206 notice; the drafting background and the list of covered buildings come from the National Fire Agency's regulatory impact assessment; and the side-by-side reading of the two articles is marked as ours. This is general information about how to read the text and does not replace a determination for any particular building. Check actual application with your local fire station. If carbon monoxide poisoning is suspected, ventilate, leave the area immediately, then call emergency services.
