Title
Overseas Korean Registration extract cannot be issued without prior registration abroad Even with a genuine record of staying abroad, no extract proving that stay is issued if the person never registered at the local consulate.
- Related countries
- 한국
Content
Apostille Korea said it provides a document solution covering the Overseas Korean Registration extract. Unlike most civil documents, it cannot be issued online and can only be applied for in person or by post, with a processing time of four days.
- Overseas Korean Registration applies to Korean nationals who live or intend to stay for 90 days or more in a given area abroad, excluding foreign citizens.
- New registrations must be reported within 30 days and changes within 14 days.
- Without registration at the local consulate, the extract is not issued even where the stay abroad actually occurred.
- The extract cannot be issued online and is available only in person or by post, taking four days to process.
What the document is and who uses it
The government operates the Overseas Korean Registration system to support the activities of the roughly 7.4 million overseas Koreans, estimated at about 15 percent of the total population, at home and abroad, and to set and carry out appropriate administrative handling and effective protection policies. The system can be seen as applying the domestic resident registration scheme to Koreans abroad. Once registered, a person's basic personal details, address in the country of stay, purpose and status of stay and first date of entry are recorded in the Overseas Korean Registration extract. It applies to Korean nationals who live in a given area abroad or intend to stay there for 90 days or more, excluding those holding foreign citizenship; new registrations must be reported within 30 days and changes within 14 days. The people who use the extract most are students and parents preparing for special university admission and overseas Koreans returning to fulfil military service, and it is also used for matters such as national pension and residence reporting.
When the answer is that no document can be issued
Applicants occasionally receive the answer that the document cannot be issued, which calls for caution. Even where a stay abroad is genuinely demonstrated, if the person never completed Overseas Korean Registration at the local consulate the extract that legally evidences that stay is not issued. Because life abroad is unaffected by not registering, many people never attend to it and only learn of the requirement when they return to Korea and try to obtain the extract. The content of the register is recorded as of the date of application, so applying later does not bring earlier periods onto the document. The extract also differs from other civil documents in that it cannot be issued online and is available only through an in-person or postal application, with a processing time of four days. For applicants whose family and acquaintances are all abroad, or who live far from Seoul, that process is inconvenient, and for special university admission, entry and exit matters and visa cases the document must further go through translation into the relevant language, notarisation and legalisation.
Frequently asked questions
Is the extract issued automatically after a long stay abroad?
No. It is issued only if Overseas Korean Registration was completed at the local consulate.
Does registering later cover the earlier period of stay?
No. The register records content as of the application date, so earlier periods do not appear on the document.
Can it be issued online?
No. It is available only through an in-person or postal application and takes four days to process.
Source: 문화뉴스 · 2017-05-17