The present disclosure relates to a communication method and system for converging a 5th-Generation (5G) communication system for supporting higher data rates beyond a 4th-Generation (4G) system with a technology for Internet of Things (IoT). The present disclosure may be applied to intelligent services based on the 5G communication technology and the IoT-related technology, such as smart home, smart building, smart city, smart car, connected car, health care, digital education, smart retail, security and safety services. The present disclosure provides a method and apparatus for configuring a paging area while centering a terminal thereon and updating the same in a network supporting a light connection. According to the present disclosure, a terminal in a communication system may: receive an RRC connection release message including paging area (PA)-related information from a first base station and receive system information from a second base station; and check whether a PA has been changed, on the basis of the PA-related information and PA-related information included in the system information, and transmit an RRC connection resume request message to the second base station when the PA has been changed.