What Is a Statement of No Desire for Punishment in Korea?

Short answer. It is a document in which the victim says they do not want the accused punished, and what it achieves depends entirely on the offence. For offences that cannot be prosecuted against the victim’s express wishes, it blocks the prosecution. For every other offence it is mitigation only. Article 232 of the Criminal Procedure Act sets the timing and the finality: a complaint may be withdrawn only before the first instance judgment is pronounced, a person who withdraws cannot complain again, and the same two rules apply to withdrawing a statement that punishment is wanted.

What Korean law says

Article 232(1): a complaint may be withdrawn before the judgment of the first instance is pronounced.

Article 232(2): a person who has withdrawn a complaint cannot file a complaint again.

Article 232(3): where, in a case in which a prosecution cannot be instituted against the victim’s express wishes, a statement that punishment is wanted is withdrawn, paragraphs 1 and 2 apply in the same way.

Where the offence is not in that category, the document operates through Article 51 of the Criminal Act, which requires the court to consider, among other things, the relationship with the victim and the circumstances after the offence.

Criminal Procedure Act, Article 232, Act No. 21241, in force from 1 July 2026; Criminal Act Article 51, Act No. 21450, in force from 13 September 2026.

What usually happens in practice

The first question is always which category the charge falls into, and it is not answered by how serious the case feels. Assault and intimidation are in the category where the victim’s wishes block prosecution. Sex offences under the Criminal Act have not been in that category since 2013. Traffic injury cases are in it unless the proviso in the traffic legislation applies. Getting this wrong is expensive, because a defence built on obtaining the document is a defence built on nothing if the offence is outside the category.

The second point is timing. Under Article 232 the document must arrive before the first instance judgment is pronounced, and paragraph 2 makes the step irreversible for the victim. Courts are alert to documents obtained late or under pressure, which is another reason contact is made through a lawyer rather than directly.

Even where the document is only mitigation, it is strong mitigation, and the recent sentencing decisions show it carrying more weight than a court deposit made without agreement.

What you should do next

Establish first whether your offence is one that cannot be prosecuted against the victim’s wishes.
Work to the first instance judgment as the deadline, not to some later stage.
Arrange any approach through a lawyer. Direct contact can become a separate offence.
If the offence is outside the category, plan for mitigation rather than for the case ending.

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Written and reviewed by Soobin You, Attorney at YUSU Lawfirm. Former prosecutor. Last legal review: 12 September 2026.