Renunciation of Foreign Nationality
Obligation of persons who acquire the nationality of the Republic of Korea to renounce foreign nationality
- General cases
· A foreigner who has acquired the nationality of the Republic of Korea shall renounce the nationality of the foreign country within one year after acquiring the nationality of the Republic of Korea. If he/she fails to renounce the nationality of the foreign country within the specified period, he/she shall lose the nationality of the Republic of Korea upon its expiration (Article 10 (1) and (3) of the Nationality Act).
- Exceptional cases
· Notwithstanding an obligation to renounce the nationality of the foreign country within one year, any of the following persons shall either renounce the nationality of the foreign country or vow his/her intention not to exercise his/her foreign nationality in the Republic of Korea to the Minister of Justice, as prescribed by the Minister of Justice, within one year from the date he/she acquired the nationality of the Republic of Korea in order to retain his/her Korean nationality (Article 10 (2) of the Nationality Act and Article 13 of the Enforcement Decree of the Nationality Act).
1. A person who had any ground falling under any of the following cases when he/she obtained permission for naturalization;
A. A person who has had a domicile in the Republic of Korea for at least two consecutive years, being married to his/her Korean spouse;
B. A person for whom three years have lapsed since he/she became married to his/her Korean spouse, having a domicile in the Republic of Korea for at least one year consecutively.
2. A person who finds it impracticable to renounce a foreign nationality because of laws and institutions of the foreign country or a person who is deemed to be in circumstances corresponding thereto;
3. A person who has submitted documents certifying the circumstantial difficulties in following the procedure for renunciation of nationality within the period prescribed in Article 10 (1) of the Act to the Minister of Justice, because of the laws and scheme of the relevant foreign country, in spite that he/she has commenced a procedure for the renunciation of nationality of the relevant foreign country without delay after acquiring the nationality of the Republic of Korea.
· A person who has both the nationality of the Republic of Korea and that of a foreign country (hereinafter referred to as "persons with multiple nationalities") shall be treated only as a national of the Republic of Korea in applying the laws and regulations of the Republic of Korea (Article 11-2 (1) of the Nationality Act).
· When a person with multiple nationalities intends to engage in a field in which he/she is not allowed to perform official duties while maintaining the nationality of a foreign country under relevant laws and regulations, the person shall renounce the nationality of a foreign country (Article 11-2 (2) of the Nationality Act).
- Submission of certificate of renunciation of nationality
· When a person falling under subparagraph 3 above completes the procedure for the renunciation of a foreign nationality, he/she shall submit his/her certificate, etc. of renunciation of nationality to the Minister of Justice without delay (Article 13 (2) of the Enforcement Decree of the Nationality Act).
· A person who has submitted a certificate, etc. of renunciation of nationality under the regulation above shall be issued a written verification of the renunciation of a foreign nationality by the Minister of Justice (Article 11 (2) of the Enforcement Decree of the Nationality Act).
Reporting on Resident Registration
Obligation to report
- A person who has acquired the nationality of the Republic of Korea and completed a procedure for the renunciation of his/her foreign nationality shall file a report to be registered as a resident at an Eup/Myeon/Dong office having jurisdiction over his/her domicile in accordance with the Resident Registration Act (Articles 6 (1) and 8 of the Resident Registration Act).
Documents to be submitted
- When filing a report to be registered as a resident, the person shall submit ① a copy of the notice of permission for naturalization, ② basic certificates, ③ a written verification of the renunciation of a foreign nationality (a written verification of the deferred renunciation of a foreign nationality), etc.
Issuance of resident registration certificates
- A resident registration certificate shall be issued within 10 to 14 days after a report on resident registration is filed.
Surrender of Alien Registration Certificates
Obligation to surrender an alien registration certificate
- If a foreigner has acquired the nationality of the Republic of Korea, the foreigner shall surrender his/her alien registration certificate to the head of a Gu who has jurisdiction over his/her place of sojourn (refer to Article 37, paragraph 2 of the Immigration Control Act and Article 46, paragraph 2, subparagraph 1 of the Enforcement Decree of the Immigration Control Act).
Timing and method of surrender
- The person himself/herself, his/her spouse, parents, de facto supporter, sibling, referee, or a cohabitant shall surrender his/her alien registration certificate within 30 days of the filing date of resident registration (Article 46 (2) 1 and Article 89 (1) of the Enforcement Decree of the Immigration Act).
Documents to be submitted
- When surrendering an alien registration certificate, the person shall submit a copy of the notice of permission for naturalization, basic certificates, and his/her resident registration certificate as well.
Administrative fines in the event of breaches
- Any person who fails to surrender his/her alien registration certificate in violation of such regulations shall be subject to an administrative fine of over KRW 100,000 or not exceeding KRW 1 million (subparagraph 1 of Article 100 (2) of the Immigration Control Act and subparagraph 2 (f) in Attached Table 2 of the Enforcement Decree of the Immigration Control Act).
Reacquisition of Nationality of the Republic of Korea
Meanings of the nationality reacquisition reporting system
- When a person who has lost the nationality of the Republic of Korea renounces his/her nationality of a foreign country within one year after the loss of his/her nationality of the Republic of Korea, he/she may acquire the nationality of the Republic of Korea again, upon reporting to the Minister of Justice (Article 11 (1) of the Nationality Act).
- The person may acquire the nationality of the Republic of Korea again only by reporting, without going through the procedure for permission for the recovery of nationality.
Procedure for reporting on reacquisition of nationality
- A person who intends to reacquire the nationality of the Republic of Korea shall submit a report on nationality acquisition (Form 1 of the Enforcement Rule of the Nationality Act) and the following documents to the Minister of Justice (Article 15 (1) of the Enforcement Decree of the Nationality Act, Article 10 of the Enforcement Rule of the Nationality Act, and Article 17 of the Guidelines on the Processing of Nationality Affairs).
1. Certificates concerning family relation records or documents proving the acquisition of the nationality of the Republic of Korea;
2. Documents proving the renunciation of a foreign nationality and stating its date;
3. Documents required for notice of nationality acquisition under Article 93 of the Act on the Registration, etc. of Family Relationships and for preparation, etc. of the family relation register, prescribed by the Minister of Justice.