Korea's regular Assembly session — the four jobs packed into 100 days from September
The regular session of South Korea's National Assembly opens automatically on September 1 each year and runs for a maximum of 100 days. What distinguishes it from an extraordinary session, which is convened on request for a specific purpose and capped at 30 days, is that its agenda is fixed in advance. Four things recur every year in the same order: passing bills, confirmation hearings for ministerial nominees, the state audit of government ministries and public institutions in October, and scrutiny of the following year's budget. The budget carries a constitutional deadline, since it must be passed 30 days before the fiscal year begins on January 1, which means December 2. The 439th session opened on September 1, 2026 and runs to December 9, with floor votes on September 3, party leaders' speeches on September 7 and 8, interpellation of the government from September 9 to 14, six ministerial confirmation hearings concentrated between September 14 and 18, the state audit starting October 6, and a budget put at around 821 trillion won
The three lines
- Form — opens September 1 every year, up to 100 days. Unlike extraordinary sessions, the agenda is preset
- Four jobs — bills, confirmation hearings, the October state audit, and the budget (December 2 deadline)
- 2026 — the 439th session, September 1 to December 9. Six hearings September 14-18, audit from October 6, 821tn won budget
Key questions
- How does a regular session differ from an extraordinary session
- **In how it opens, when, and how long it lasts.** The **regular session opens automatically on September 1.** Nobody has to request it; it convenes on a set date and runs for a maximum of **100 days**, and its agenda is largely predetermined because the budget and the state audit are attached to it. An **extraordinary session** is convened when needed — on the president's request or that of at least a quarter of sitting members — runs for up to **30 days**, and addresses specified business. The practical consequence is that **the regular session cannot be avoided.** However bad relations between the parties are, it opens on September 1 and the budget has a deadline. **So every political confrontation of the year plays out inside those 100 days, against a clock.** By contrast, convening an extraordinary session is itself a negotiable act. One more distinction: **the state audit exists only within the regular session.** Once a year, the legislature examines government ministries and public institutions across the board — a mechanism with no equivalent at any other point in the calendar.
- What actually happens during a regular session
- **Four things, in roughly the same order every year.** **① Bills.** Standing committees review and the plenary votes throughout the session; in 2026 the first such sitting was September 3. **② Setting the terms of debate.** Party leaders' speeches, in which each party's leader sets out its position on national affairs, and interpellation, in which members question the prime minister and cabinet ministers directly. In 2026 the speeches were September 7-8 and interpellation September 9-14. **③ The state audit.** Three weeks in October examining ministries and public institutions, with documents requested and witnesses summoned. In 2026 it began October 6. **④ The budget.** Once the audit ends, the remainder of the session is effectively a budget session, moving from standing committees to the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts to the plenary. On top of these, **confirmation hearings** are added in years when the cabinet changes. In 2026 hearings for six ministerial nominees were concentrated between **September 14 and 18.**
- Why is the budget deadline December 2
- **Because the Constitution requires passage 30 days before the fiscal year begins.** Korea's fiscal year starts on **January 1**, and 30 days before that is **December 2**. The government, for its part, must submit its budget bill to the Assembly 90 days before the fiscal year starts. The reason for the margin is administrative: ministries cannot tender contracts or commit to next year's projects until the budget is fixed, and a budget confirmed on January 1 leaves no time to prepare. **The deadline is not, however, self-enforcing.** It has been missed in a number of years, and when it is, the budget is simply passed late. **The heavier date is the session's own closing day.** Anything not disposed of when the session ends carries over, and taking it up then requires convening an extraordinary session. For 2026 the regular session closes on **December 9**, so the budget's actual passage falls somewhere between the December 2 constitutional deadline and that closing date. The budget itself has been reported at around **821 trillion won.**
- What are the flashpoints in the 2026 session
- **Personnel at the front, money at the back.** The first pressure point is the **third week of September.** Confirmation hearings for the six ministerial nominees from President Lee Jae-myung's reshuffle are concentrated on **September 14-18**, and the most contested is the hearing for **Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won on September 15.** The opposition People Power Party is challenging his suitability on three grounds: that he co-chaired a Democratic Party members' group advocating **withdrawal of the prosecution's case against President Lee**, that he took part in sponsoring a special counsel bill on that withdrawal, and that he led the move in the Legislation and Judiciary Committee to **abolish prosecutors' supplementary investigation powers.** The two sides have framed the period as 'pragmatic appointments' against 'an assault on governance.' The later flashpoints are the **821 trillion won budget** and property-related legislation. One structural point is worth carrying into it: **the Assembly's opposition does not block an appointment.** Adoption of a hearing report is not a legal precondition, so the hearing's real function is closer to **creating a record** than to preventing anyone taking office.
Once a year, Korea's National Assembly opens on a fixed date whether anyone asks it to or not. That date is September 1, and the session that follows is the regular session.
What makes it distinctive is not its length. It is that the agenda is decided in advance.
1. Against an extraordinary session
| Regular session | Extraordinary session | |
|---|---|---|
| Opening | Automatic, September 1 each year | On request by the president or a quarter of members |
| Length | Up to 100 days | Up to 30 days |
| Agenda | Fixed in advance (includes budget and state audit) | Specific stated business |
| Convening | Not negotiable | Convening is itself a negotiation |
One consequence follows from all of it: the regular session cannot be avoided.
However bad relations are, it opens on September 1, and the budget carries a deadline. So the year's political confrontations all play out inside these 100 days, on a clock.
Worth noting separately: the state audit exists only here. Once a year the legislature examines ministries and public institutions across the board, with no equivalent elsewhere in the calendar.
2. Four jobs, in order
| Stage | Content | 2026 dates |
|---|---|---|
| ① Bills | Committee review, then plenary votes | Plenary sitting September 3 |
| ② Terms of debate | Party leaders' speeches; interpellation of the government | Speeches September 7-8; interpellation September 9-14 |
| ③ State audit | Ministries and public institutions, three weeks | Begins October 6 |
| ④ Budget | Committees → Budget and Accounts Committee → plenary | After the audit, into December |
Party leaders' speeches are each party leader setting out their position on national affairs; interpellation is members questioning the prime minister and ministers directly. Both sit early because together they map the argument for the rest of the session.
Confirmation hearings are added in years when the cabinet changes, and they cluster near the front.
3. Why December 2
Korea's fiscal year begins on January 1. The Constitution requires the budget to be passed 30 days before the fiscal year starts — December 2. The government must submit its bill 90 days before the start.
The margin exists for practical reasons: ministries cannot tender or contract for next year's projects until the budget is fixed, and a January 1 confirmation leaves no preparation time.
The deadline is not self-enforcing. It has been missed repeatedly, and when it is, the budget passes late.
The heavier date is the session's closing day. Business not disposed of by then carries over, and taking it up afterwards requires convening an extraordinary session. In 2026 the regular session closes on December 9.
4. The 439th session — people first, money later
| Period | Flashpoint |
|---|---|
| September | Confirmation hearings — six ministerial nominees, concentrated September 14-18 |
| October | State audit — three weeks from October 6 |
| November-December | 821 trillion won budget · property legislation |
The first pressure point is the third week of September, and within it the hearing for Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won on September 15.
The People Power Party is contesting three things — that he co-chaired a Democratic Party members' group advocating withdrawal of the prosecution's case against President Lee, that he helped sponsor a special counsel bill on that withdrawal, and that he led the push in the Legislation and Judiciary Committee to abolish prosecutors' supplementary investigation powers. The two sides have branded the period 'pragmatic appointments' and 'an assault on governance' respectively.
There is a structural point that shapes how all of this ends. Opposition in the Assembly does not block an appointment. Adoption of a hearing report is not a legal precondition for the president to appoint a minister. So the hearing's practical function is producing a record, not preventing an appointment.
5. How to follow a session
A handful of dates give you the whole shape.
- September 1 — opening. The year's dividing lines are drawn here
- Mid-September — confirmation hearings, in reshuffle years
- Early October — the state audit begins; three weeks of documents and witnesses
- December 2 — constitutional budget deadline
- Closing day — unfinished business carries over
The audit documents are the session's longest-lived by-product. Statistics and written answers submitted by ministries to the Assembly go on being cited in reporting and research for the following year.
6. What is still open
- The provisions are not quoted here. The opening date, session lengths and budget deadline come from the Constitution and the National Assembly Act; this article uses the commonly employed description rather than the text.
- The budget figure differs by outlet. Both 821 trillion won and 'the 800 trillion won range' were reported. The government's submitted figure requires Ministry of Economy and Finance material.
- Dates can move. Plenary sittings, leaders' speeches, interpellation and the audit start are as reported and adjust by inter-party agreement.
- Whether a hearing proceeds is separate from whether it is scheduled. The September 15 date was reported as a committee agreement; the sitting itself, and whether a report is adopted, can only be confirmed afterwards.
Sources
- MoneyToday — Regular session opens: parties set to clash over legislation, hearings, the audit and the budget
- MoneyToday — The 100-day regular session begins: ruling and opposition parties clash over appointments, bills, audit and budget
- Digital Times — 100-day regular session begins: an 800 trillion won budget, three property bills and six ministerial hearings
- Maeil Shinmun — September regular session opens on a 100-day run, with an 821 trillion won budget and livelihood legislation in dispute
- Kyongbuk Ilbo — Confirmation hearings for six ministerial nominees concentrated on the 14th to 18th
- Sisa Journal — Kim Seung-won under scrutiny: the central issues in the Justice Minister confirmation hearing
- Herald Business — A contentious nomination from the start: 'case withdrawal' and 'drug approval lobbying' set to dominate the Justice Minister hearing