The criminal record certificate is essential for jobs abroad, yet all but impossible to obtain locally Without a public digital certificate, online issuance is closed off, and consulates simply advise applicants to travel to Korea and collect it there.

Apostille Korea says it has built a processing system to reduce the difficulty of obtaining a criminal record certificate while staying abroad. The document is mandatory for overseas employment, entry and residence matters, but the routes to obtaining it from abroad are effectively closed.

On the checklist, but out of reach

As cross-border travel grows more frequent and employment with foreign companies rises, demand grows for the criminal record certificate, the basic document used to verify identity. Criminal records, however, count as top-level personal data, which makes the issuance procedure complex. One applicant on a long-term working holiday visa in the United States found the certificate on the checklist after interviewing for an internship at a trading company there. The consulate advised applying online or, failing that, travelling to Korea to collect it in person, but with no public digital certificate the online route was closed and there was no time to fly home. The document is a form setting out the applicant's own criminal record, and it is divided into two versions depending on whether expired sentences are included.

The burden that remains even with a proxy

Because the version that includes expired sentences is a sensitive document, the rule is that it be used only to verify the individual, and disclosure occurs only within the minimum scope allowed, in cases prescribed by law such as residence permits for foreign nationals. Online issuance requires installing several security module programs and registering a public digital certificate; anyone who cannot meet that has to apply in person. Residents in Korea are expected to obtain it themselves, while those abroad may appoint a proxy. That route requires documents proving the overseas stay, collection of the certificate by the proxy, and then ministry confirmation plus an apostille or consular legalisation depending on the country. Even with a proxy, the applicant must accept that a document holding sensitive personal data is handled where they cannot check it, so many Koreans abroad fly home simply to collect the paperwork. Apostille Korea says it built its system for people caught in this gap, and that a fast and secure specialist office is the better route for a document carrying such information.

Frequently asked questions

Source: 데일리시큐 · 2017-03-21