Decision on BTS' military service obligations to be made by December

Following recent reports that South Korean defence minister Lee Jong-sup said it is "desirable that members of BTS carry out their mandatory military service," South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) minister Park Bo Kyun reportedly said at the National Assembly’s parliamentary inspection of the administration that a decision on the group's military service obligations will be made by December.

According to Soompi, minister Park Bo Kyun said, "Member Jin’s enlistment is set to be sorted out by December, but the MCST will finalise our stance as soon as possible before then.

He added, "We are comprehensively reviewing the issue by looking at various aspects including the points that national defence is a sacred duty, military service is a symbol of fairness, BTS has made Korea known as the vanguard of K-culture and created a huge economic ripple effect, there are equity issues between popular artists including BTS and those who practice fine arts, this will affect the group when one of the BTS members joins the army, there are [results of] public opinion analysis and opinions of men in their 20s, and so on."

The decision is due to arrive ahead of Jin's 30th birthday, and if BTS aren't exempt, Jin will have to enlist in early 2023. In 2020, an amendment was made to the Military Service Act to allow certain pop stars to defer their compulsory military service until the age of 30.

Last month a new bill was proposed by the Democratic Party of Korea's Kim Young-bae, which could allow pop stars who have received merits from the government (like BTS) to serve an alternative form of military service.