National Court Administration, Family Register Office for Overseas Koreans

  • KOREAN
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Report of Adoption

Adoption and Nationality

  1. Acquisition of nationality (if an adopted child is a foreigner)

    A foreigner may not acquire the nationality of the Republic of Korea automatically through adoption.

    According to the “Nationality Act”, if the adopted foreigner is a minor with a domicile in the Republic of Korea, the child meets the requirements for special naturalization and is qualified to acquire the nationality of the Republic of Korea.

    If the adopted foreigner is an adult at the time of adoption and has a domicile of at least three years in the Republic of Korea without interruption, he or she meets the requirements for facilitated naturalization and is qualified to acquire the nationality of the Republic of Korea with permission for naturalization.

  2. Loss of nationality (if the adopted child is Korean)

    A Korean adopted by a foreigner does not lose the nationality of the Republic of Korea immediately.

    If a Korean is adopted by a foreigner and acquires the nationality of their adoptive parent, he or she loses the Korean nationality retrospectively from the date of acquiring the foreign country’s nationality unless he or she reports their intention to retain Korean nationality to the Minister of Justice within six months of acquiring the foreign country’s nationality, under Article 15 (2) of the “Nationality Act”.

    In contrast, a person who voluntarily acquires a foreign country’s nationality through naturalization automatically loses their Korean nationality under Article 15 (1) of the “Nationality Act”.