Apostille Korea flags Family Relationship Certificate for minors travelling abroad Minors are being turned away at check-in counters because families arrive without the Family Relationship Certificate.

Apostille Korea has said that travelling abroad with a minor requires travel-guarantee documents such as the Family Relationship Certificate. Because the certificate is issued only in Korean, it must be translated into the language of the destination country and notarised before it can be used internationally. When a child travels with only one parent or with a third party, a parental travel consent is required in addition.

The document is requested even when the whole family travels together

The Family Relationship Certificate records an individual's birth, marriage, death and other changes in family status. Because it is used in most domestic administrative matters, including marriage and inheritance, many people assume it has no use outside Korea. In practice it is requested when a minor enters or leaves a country, as proof of the family relationship with the accompanying adult. Cases of minors being refused at the airport for not carrying it occur regularly. One couple planning an overseas trip with their child was refused a boarding pass at an Incheon Airport check-in desk because they had no Family Relationship Certificate. They presented family photographs, identification and the ticket booking confirmation, but were told the rules did not allow the ticket to be issued, and only after printing the certificate from an unmanned civil document kiosk inside the airport could they proceed. That the document is needed even when both parents are travelling is still not widely known.

Translation and notarisation make the document usable abroad

Countries across the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Middle East have tightened entry and exit requirements for minors in order to prevent international crimes such as child trafficking and abduction. Embassies in Seoul state on their websites that travellers who do not carry travel-guarantee documents may be refused entry or exit and that responsibility for any resulting problem rests with the traveller. The difficulty is that few travellers are aware of this notice. Preparation is not straightforward either. Since the Family Relationship Certificate is issued only in Korean, it must be translated into the language of the country where it will be submitted and then notarised before it can be used internationally. If a minor departs with a third party rather than a parent, or with only one parent, a parental travel consent is required alongside the notarised certificate, and that document must also go through notarisation and legalisation. Apostille Korea handles the sequence of translation, notarisation and embassy or foreign ministry legalisation on the applicant's behalf.

Frequently asked questions

Source: FNTIMES · 2017-07-21