Citizens of the Republic of Korea must possess a valid passport to leave the country.
The concept of a passport
- A “passport” refers to a document that certifies the identity and nationality of a person traveling abroad (referenced from the Korean Legislation Research Institute’s legal terminology).
※ Distinction from Travel Certificate
A “Travel Certificate” refers to a document issued as a substitute for a passport to individuals such as those residing or living abroad who have been refused or restricted from obtaining or renewing a passport, or those who have been forcibly deported from a foreign country, and others as described below (Article 14(1) of the Passport Act; Article 16 of the Enforcement Decree of the Passport Act):
· Stateless individuals leaving the country;
· Overseas adoptees;
· Individuals recognized by the Minister of Foreign Affairs as needing a travel certificate according to Article 10 of the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act;
· Individuals residing or living abroad who have been refused or restricted from obtaining or renewing a passport, or those who need a travel certificate to return to their home country after being forcibly deported from a foreign country;
· Foreigners who are forcibly deported from the Republic of Korea according to Article 46 of the Immigration Act and cannot obtain a passport or equivalent document from their nationality country; or
· Other individuals similar to the above who are recognized by the Minister of Foreign Affairs as being in urgent need of a travel certificate.
The validity period of the Travel Certificate is within 1 year, and its validity expires once the purpose of its issuance is fulfilled (Article 14(2) of the Passport Act).
Classification and types of passports
- Passports are classified based on the subject of issuance into regular passports, official passports, diplomatic passports, and emergency passports. They are further categorized into single-entry passports, which allow one-time travel abroad, and multiple-entry passports, which allow unlimited travel abroad until their expiration date (see Article 4, Paragraph (1) and (2) of the Passport Act).
Passport validity period
- The validity period of a regular passport is 10 years (Article 6(1) of the Enforcement Decree of the Passport Act).
- However, a passport with a different validity period can be issued to individuals who fall under any of the following categories (Article 6(2) of the Enforcement Decree of the Passport Act):
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Category
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Validity Period
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▪ People under 18 years of age
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5 years
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▪ People aged 18 to 37 who fall under the categories of military service reserve, maritime work reserve, supplementary service, or alternative service (excluding those who have completed their service within 6 months, those who have completed their service, or those who have received overseas travel permission under Article 70 of the Military Service Act until the last day of the year they turn 37)
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5 years
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▪ People who have been notified by the head of the relevant administrative agency that they can only travel abroad for a certain period because of ongoing litigation or other reasons
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Notified period
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▪ People residing abroad who are members of anti-state organizations as defined in Article 2 of the National Security Act and are likely to cause significant harm to the security, public order, unification, and foreign policy of the Republic of Korea
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A period determined by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, ranging from 1 to 5 years, based on the degree of potential harm
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▪ Persons who have lost their passports who fall under any of the following (however, if the passport loss is due to force majeure such as natural disasters, it is not included in the number of losses)
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1. People who have lost their passport twice within 5 years before the date of application for reissuance
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5 years
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2. People who have lost their passport three times or more within 5 years before the date of application for reissuance
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2 years
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3. Notwithstanding 1 above, people who have lost their passport twice within 1 year before the date of application for reissuance
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2 years
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▪ People who have not taken the oath according to Article 10(2) of the Nationality Act
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5 years
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- In cases that fall under any of the following, a regular passport with a different validity period can be issued if desired (Article 6(3) of the Enforcement Decree of the Passport Act).
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Category
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Validity Period
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▪ When applying for a reissuance of a passport
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The period from the day of reissuance to the expiration date specified in the original passport
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▪ When applying for a new passport because there are no blank visa pages left in the current passport
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The period from the day of issuance of the new passport to the expiration date specified in the original passport
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Information included in the passport
- The following information is printed and electronically stored on the personal information page of the passport (Article 7 of the Passport Act; Article 3(1) of the Enforcement Decree of the Passport Act):
· Type of passport, issuing country, passport number, issuance date, expiration date, and issuing authority; and
· Name, nationality, gender, date of birth, and photo of the passport holder.
- However, in cases that fall under any of the following, the above information may not be electronically stored (proviso to Article 7(2) of the Passport Act; Article 3(2) of the Enforcement Decree of the Passport Act):
· Emergency passport issuance; or
· Issuance of a travel certificate.