Naturalization

Naturalization process

This is a process to acquire Korean citizenship for a foreigner married to a Korean national. A foreigner can get an F-2-1 (Joining family) visa after marrying a Korean national through which he or she is granted one year of sojourn which can be extended from 1 year (min.) up to 2 years (max.). In accordance with the Korean Nationality Act amended in June 1998, a foreign national who has stayed in Korea for a continuous 2-year period after marriage and has applied for naturalization under the Ministry of Law can acquire Korean nationality after passing a relevant test.

General Naturalization

Requirements for General Naturalization:

• Must have had domicile address in Rep. of Korea for more than 5 consecutive years.
• Must be legally adult according to Korean Civil Law.
• Must have good conduct.
• Must have the ability to maintain living on his/ her own assets or skills; or is a dependent member of a family member capable of the feat.
  • Applicants must have basic knowledge befitting a Korean national; such as understanding of the Korean language, customs and culture.
  • Only foreigners that have never attained Korean nationality, have no family relationship whatsoever with a Korean national, and have had domicile address in Korea for more than 5 consecutive years are eligible to apply for general naturalization.

Required Documents:

• Naturalization Application Form: 1 color photo (4 cm x 5 cm)
  After filling out the form, submit 2 copies of the first page
• A copy of Passport
• A Statement for Citizenship Application 
• A Statement of Identity /a copy of Statement of Identity with photo attached 
• A copy of foreign family registration or citizenship papers
• A Recommendation Letter from more than 2 persons (attached with a Certificate Incumbency of those recommending) by individuals qualified for recommendation according to Article 3-23 of Nationality Act regulations.
• Example: Congressman, head of local government, council member, educational committee member / senior officer, Principal / assistant principal of elementary and middle school, judge, prosecutor, attorney, professor, university instructor, senior public officer, employee(manager or higher) of financial institute, broadcasting company and daily newspaper, and employee (manager or higher) of listed company.
• Financial document (Written proof of being self-reliant):
  - Bank balance containing more than 30 million won in the name of the applicant or his/ her family
  - Lease contract or Real Estate Register Certificate valued at 30 million won
  - A certificate of incumbency (With a copy of Employer’s Business Registration Certificate)
  - A scheduled employment confirmation certificate (Financial guarantee not allowed)
  - For the self-employed, a copy of your Business Registration Certificate and store lease contract
• Proving documents of parents, spouse, children, marriage status or adoption of person who applied for naturalization.
• Documents issued by government of People’s Republic of China proving the person who applied for naturalization is Korean Chinese when his/her name is written in Korean pronunciation not in Chinese pronunciation. In case that the person who applied for naturalization specifies the date of birth newly, a certificate proving this fact issued by Embassy or consulate’s office of their original country.

Notice Fee: 100,000 won (Government Revenue Stamp)

- Items subject to change depending on individual circumstances.
- Documents written in foreign languages need to be translated in Korean and notarized. Notarization will be exempted only for English and Chinese. (In this case, you must record name and contact number of translator.)

Citizenship of Children

In accordance with the revised Nationality law, children can automatically acquire Korean citizenship even if only one parent has Korean citizenship. However, the child must choose one nationality before becoming 22 if their citizenship is not chosen earlier. Even if the father does not have Korean citizenship, the children shall receive education services and health insurance benefits without problems. However, some countries allow dual nationality for their citizens so please check with your embassy.