Tesla Accused of Misleading FSD Software Sales in South Korea; Korea Fair Trade Commission Launches Investigation
nashnova research
A Korean consumer group has formally complained that Tesla charged owners for FSD software 99% of them cannot legally use; the Fair Trade Commission has opened an investigation that could become a key obstacle to Tesla's autonomous-driving push across Asia.
What exactly did Tesla sell that buyers cannot use?
Tesla's FSD — Full Self-Driving (Supervised), an advanced driver-assistance package that still requires the driver's full attention — can legally run on only about 20% of Tesla vehicles registered in South Korea.
The eligible cars are U.S.-built models meeting American safety standards, which are recognized under the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement. Most Teslas sold in Korea, however, come from Tesla's Shanghai factory and fall outside that agreement.
This means → For years, Tesla has collected FSD fees from owners whose cars could never legally activate the feature from day one.
How many "ineligible" cars were sold?
Since 2023, Tesla has sold more than 170,000 Shanghai-made vehicles in South Korea.
Data Tesla submitted to Korea's National Assembly shows 99% of new Teslas sold in 2024 cannot legally use FSD.
Sales of FSD-incompatible, China-made Teslas in Korea grew more than fivefold from 2023 to 2024. In plain terms = Tesla kept selling — and charging for — FSD on cars it knew could not run the software.
How much did Tesla charge, and why was certification so late?
FSD was previously a one-time purchase at KRW 9.043 million (≈ US $6,726); since August it switched to a monthly subscription of KRW 150,000.
Tesla Korea general manager Seo Young-deuk confirmed at an October 8 parliamentary hearing that the company had never formally applied for FSD test certification on its China-made vehicles. The application was filed only two weeks later.
This means → Billing ran far ahead of certification — consumers paid, yet Tesla had not even started the process to make FSD legal on their cars.
What are Korean regulators saying?
Korea's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has stated that FSD does not comply with local safety regulations, including the requirement that drivers keep both hands on the steering wheel.
The Korea Fair Trade Commission confirmed it opened an investigation into Tesla's FSD advertising earlier this year and has received a written response from Tesla.
The consumer group is asking the Commission to issue a temporary cease-and-desist order on FSD marketing for ineligible vehicles, impose administrative fines, and refer the case to a national investigative agency.
What does this mean for Tesla?
The complaint notes that Tesla promoted FSD as "coming soon" last year and even filmed a demo video in Korea, yet never disclosed the feature applied to only a tiny fraction of cars on sale.
Consumer-group head Choi Young-suk said: "Tesla earned substantial revenue by selling an expensive driver-assistance system to mass-market consumers who could not use it for even a single day."
This reflects a fundamental tension in Tesla's global FSD rollout — the software is being sold faster than regulators can approve it. Korea's pushback may set the tone for the rest of Asia.
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