Data-center law in North Korea
National jurisdiction · as of 2026-09-07
North Korea has no data-centre-specific siting, permitting, or utility statute; a data-centre project would fall under the general regimes for environmental review, pollution control, and foreign investment.
The Environmental Impact Assessment Law (2005) requires that a project receive an EIS decision before the State construction supervision organ, land and environmental protection organ, State planning organ, financial institution, or other institutions concerned may approve its planning, development, or construction (Art. 29); the Law's own earlier articles, including its stated scope of application, are not reproduced legibly in the available copy of the text.
The Law on the Protection of the Environment (1986) separately requires institutions and enterprises to take pollution-prevention measures before beginning production and to comply with State-set emission, noise, and vibration limits (Arts. 4 and 19).
The Law on Foreign Investment (1992, amended 1999) names telecommunications, science and technology, and infrastructure construction among the sectors open to foreign investors, gives tax, land-use, and loan preferences to enterprises in State-encouraged priority sectors (Arts. 6 to 8), and sets out separate customs and income-tax incentives for the Rason Economic and Trade Zone (Art. 9); it also bars investment in a project that is technically obsolete or harmful to the environment (Art. 11).
No Electric Power Law or Economic Development Zones Law text was found among the primary sources consulted for North Korea, so grid-interconnection and free-zone-specific rules are not described here.
01
Instruments on record
3 instruments on record, grouped by the family of approval each one governs.
Environmental review
What impact review must precede approval, and who leads it?
Environmental Impact Assessment Law, Approval Precondition
In force
Environmental Impact Assessment Law, Art. 29, 2005
Applies to both
Article 29 bars the State construction supervision organ, land and environmental protection organ, State planning organ, financial institution, and other institutions concerned from approving the planning, development, or construction of a project that has not been subjected to an environmental impact assessment.
Article 28 requires the land and environmental protection organ to inspect execution of an EIS decision on completion of construction, and a project failing to meet that decision's requirements does not pass the completion inspection. Article 33 refers a violation causing grave environmental consequences to administrative or penal responsibility, depending on the gravity of the offence, without stating a specific fine or term.
The Law's earlier articles, including its own stated scope of application, are not reproduced legibly in the available copy of the text.
Source: Full text of law
Air and operations
What permits govern backup generators and ongoing emissions?
Law on the Protection of the Environment, Pre-Production Pollution Prevention
In force
Law on the Protection of the Environment, Arts. 4 and 19, 1986
Applies to both
Article 4 requires the State to direct and control factories, enterprises, and cooperative organisations so that they take steps to prevent environmental pollution before beginning production, and to steadily modernise their pollution-control means. Article 19 requires all institutions, enterprises, organisations, and citizens to comply strictly with the permitted limits for environmental protection, the pollutant emission standards, and the noise and vibration standards set by the State.
Article 52 refers grave environmental consequences caused by a violation of the Law to administrative or penal accountability, without stating a specific fine or term.
Source: Full text of law
Public agreements
What fiscal agreements attach a data center to its host jurisdiction?
Law on Foreign Investment, Priority Sectors and Rason Zone Incentives
In force
Law on Foreign Investment, Arts. 6-9 and 11, 1992 (amended 1999)
Effective 1992-10-05 · Applies to both
Article 6 opens telecommunications, science and technology, and infrastructure construction, among other sectors, to foreign investment. Article 7 particularly encourages investment introducing high technology and in sectors of scientific research and technology development. Article 8 separately gives an enterprise in such a priority sector preferential treatment, including reduction of and exemption from income and other taxes, favourable land-use conditions, and preferential bank loans.
Article 9 sets for the Rason Economic and Trade Zone: no customs duty on most export and import goods, a 3-year income-tax holiday from an enterprise's first profitable year followed by up to a 50 percent reduction for 2 more years, and an income-tax rate of 14 percent. Article 11 bars investment in a project that is technically obsolete or harmful to the environment.
Source: Full text of law
Every entry cites the instrument it describes.
None of it is legal advice: verify a citation before relying on it. Full
sourcing: read the methodology. The rest of the
record: all jurisdictions.