Comment récupérer ta caution locative en Corée (même si le proprio refuse de payer)

No. Under Korean rental practice, normal wear and tear (faded wallpaper, minor scuffs, sun damage) is the landlord's cost, not the tenant's. A landlord can deduct for actual damage you caused, unpaid rent, or unpaid utilities — but they must itemize it. A vague 'cleaning and repairs' deduction with no receipts is challengeable, and the burden is on the landlord to prove damage beyond normal use.

On the day the lease ends, in principle. Korean courts treat deposit return and property handover as simultaneous obligations (동시이행) — you hand over the keys, they hand over the money. In practice many landlords pay within days of re-renting the room. Anything beyond a couple of weeks without a written explanation is a red flag, and you should send a 내용증명 certified letter immediately.

A lease registration order (임차권등기명령) is a court registration that preserves your legal priority over the deposit even after you move out of the property. Without it, moving out (or leaving Korea) can destroy the opposing power (대항력) that protects your claim. If you need to fly home before the landlord pays, file it first — it's the single most important protection for departing foreigners. Apply at the district court covering the property.

Yes, but it's much harder. You can grant power of attorney to a representative in Korea or hire a Korean attorney, and a lease registration order filed before departure keeps your claim alive. Practically, resolve as much as possible before you leave: certified letter, mediation filing, and the registration order can all be completed in your final weeks. The Korea Legal Aid Corporation (대한법률구조공단, dial 132) and the Seoul Global Center offer free counseling for foreigners.

Not during the lease — Korean deposits are interest-free by custom. But once the landlord is in default after the lease ends, statutory interest applies: 5% per year under the Civil Act, rising to 12% from the date a lawsuit is served under the Act on Special Cases Concerning Expedition of Legal Proceedings. Courts apply this routinely, which is why a certified letter establishing the default date matters.

Three ways: check the property's registry (등기부등본) for mortgages before signing any large-deposit lease; buy deposit-return guarantee insurance (전세보증금반환보증) from HUG if you sign a jeonse contract; or simply avoid large deposits. Co-living and share houses run on small deposits — typically a fraction of a wolse deposit and a rounding error next to jeonse — which caps your downside at a level that's annoying to lose, not life-altering.