Korea will impose an immediate five-day operational suspension on hotels and lodges caught price-gouging or failing to transparently list their rates, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said Monday. The strict new administrative measure, which takes effect Tuesday, represents a dramatic escalation in the government’s campaign to curb predatory pricing in the hospitality sector. Previously, accommodations caught overcharging guests or hiding their price lists faced only minor warnings or nonbinding improvement orders — penalties that officials acknowledged did little to deter opportunistic spikes during peak holiday seasons. Under the revised enforcement regulations of the Public Health Control Act, the leniency is gone. A single infraction for overcharging or failing to display prices will trigger an immediate five-day shutdown. Repeated violations will meet escalating penalties: a 10-day suspension for a second offense, 20 days for a third and the permanent revocation of the establishment's business license upon a fourth strike. Significantly, the mandate expands beyond the physical