South Korea: Obtaining a Police Certificate

[BuntyHoven 1]

Thought I'd post about the Korean National Police Certificate (required for packet 3 if the intended immigrant is Korean or has lived in Korea for certain amounts of time), as I've not seen much detailed information about it.

Korean citizens: According to a poster that I saw when I went to obtain my certificate today, it is now possible to apply online for the Korea National Police Certificate here. Unfortunately it seems that the online service is currently only available for Korean citizens; the site did not recognise my ARC number. Still, useful if the intended immigrant is Korean.

Foreigners residing in Korea: The process of obtaining a police certificate at a police station is laid out in the packet 3 instructions, and are mostly on the money. A list of national police stations is available on the KNPA website. A few things from my experience obtaining a certificate today:

1) It may be necessary to make it clear that the certificate is to be used for a visa application. The certificate I obtained today states that it is for "personal verification only" (본인확인용) and goes on to list the penalties for using the certificate for any other purpose. From what I gather, the old application form for the certificate had a box (내용확인용), "for confirmation") to check for this, but it was not present on the form I filled in today. I'll be popping down to the Jongno police station tomorrow to get this confirmed and cleared up, and will update on how that goes. (I've read that they're well-versed in what's required for immigration, probably due to their close proximity to the US embassy.)

2) Otherwise, the form for applying for the certificate is straightforward and is in both English and Korean. There is a line with 3 boxes for stating the required scope of the certificate: check all 3 for criminal records, investigation records, and lapsed criminal sentences.

3) It may be a good idea to bring both your ARC and passport. I was asked to present both (although this may have had something to do with the photo on my ARC being almost unrecognisable as it has gradually faded and disappeared over the past 5 years).

4) The packet 3 instructions seem to be correct about the check taking less than 24 hours; mine was done while I waited today at a pretty central police station in Seoul. (I suppose it might take a little longer at a busier police station such as Jongno, though?)

Edited January 29, 2015 by BuntyHoven

[Shauneg 762]

Did something change? I thought Korea did not give out police certificates to non-nationals for a third country visa unless that person is currently residing in Korea. Just wanted to clarify because you said "has lived in Korea" versus "is living in Korea".....

Edited January 29, 2015 by Shauneg

[BuntyHoven 1]

Did something change? I thought Korea did not give out police certificates to non-nationals for a third country visa unless that person is currently residing in Korea. Just wanted to clarify because you said "has lived in Korea" versus "is living in Korea".....

I expect you're probably correct about the police not issuing certificates for those not residing in the country, but I can't confirm it as it's not something I have experience with. From what I can tell from the packet 3 guidelines however, immigrant visa applicants are required to produce police certificates/records from all countries in which they have resided for 12 months or more after age 16. It seems that those who have lived in Korea for a sufficient length of time but are now living elsewhere can request a Criminal Records Certificate (CRC) from their nearest Korean Consulate General or Korean Embassy to serve the same purpose as the police certificate in visa applications.

[Shauneg 762]

I expect you're probably correct about the police not issuing certificates for those not residing in the country, but I can't confirm it as it's not something I have experience with. From what I can tell from the packet 3 guidelines however, immigrant visa applicants are required to produce police certificates/records from all countries in which they have resided for 12 months or more after age 16. It seems that those who have lived in Korea for a sufficient length of time but are now living elsewhere can request a Criminal Records Certificate (CRC) from their nearest Korean Consulate General or Korean Embassy to serve the same purpose as the police certificate in visa applications.

I understand. I found my answer, it is still unvailable to those outside the country regardless how long the person lived there. If they no longer reside in Korea you cannot get the clearance. This is a known thing and Korea isn't the only country. This affects me, that's why I was wondering, thanks for the information!

http://travel.state.gov/content/visas/english/fees/reciprocity-by-country/KS.html#policerecords-2

[BuntyHoven 1]

I understand. I found my answer, it is still unvailable to those outside the country regardless how long the person lived there. If they no longer reside in Korea you cannot get the clearance. This is a known thing and Korea isn't the only country. This affects me, that's why I was wondering, thanks for the information!

http://travel.state.gov/content/visas/english/fees/reciprocity-by-country/KS.html#policerecords-2

Apologies if my original post was misleading - wish I could go back and edit that now...

I did a bit of digging and found this tucked away on the Korean embassy website notification board; not sure whether that will be of any use?

Hope everything works out for you!

Edited January 29, 2015 by BuntyHoven

[Shauneg 762]

I also didn't realize the original post pertained to filing at the U.S. embassy in Korea, because then of course anyone would be able to obtain a police certificate. No problems.

Edited January 29, 2015 by Shauneg

[rezasorna 1]

Hi,

I have a very urgent question regarding Korean police certificate. I live outside Korea now and for an application in Canada I need to get criminal records(including lapsed criminal sentences), investigation records (범죄경력(실효된 형 포함), 수사경력).

It seems this version of the certificate including the lapsed sentences are only issued inside Korea. Korean consulate in my city in Canada told me I can send a power of attorney document to a friend inside Korea and he can get it for me. I am not sure besides this POA certificate, is there any form that you fill inside the police station?

The Korean police website is in Korean 100%. Would you please send me the link to this form if you know where it is?

I feel very stressed about this. Thanks for your help in advance.

[BuntyHoven 1]

Sorry for the delayed response - my wife and I had our state-side wedding and reception this weekend, so things have been (happily) hectic.

Here is the application form for the Korean National Police Certificate. Also attached is the Power of Attorney template provided by the Korean National Police Agency; this document is all in Korean, and unfortunately my Korean is not good enough to be able to translate and explain it; hopefully you know someone who could help you with that? (If not then I could give it a try, but I can't give any guarantees as to the veracity of any translation and/or instruction I'd be able to provide.

Best of luck obtaining your documents!

(files converted from .hwp files retrieved from the 3rd tab of https://minwon.police.go.kr/#customerCenter/fileDown)

Hi,

I have a very urgent question regarding Korean police certificate. I live outside Korea now and for an application in Canada I need to get criminal records(including lapsed criminal sentences), investigation records (범죄경력(실효된 형 포함), 수사경력).

It seems this version of the certificate including the lapsed sentences are only issued inside Korea. Korean consulate in my city in Canada told me I can send a power of attorney document to a friend inside Korea and he can get it for me. I am not sure besides this POA certificate, is there any form that you fill inside the police station?

The Korean police website is in Korean 100%. Would you please send me the link to this form if you know where it is?

I feel very stressed about this. Thanks for your help in advance.

KNPC Application Form.pdf

Power of Attorney Form.doc

[rezasorna 1]

Thank you very much for your reply and the forms. It is a relief having the forms. There is a Korea lady working in the same building as I, I have to say hello and ask her help

I have a question. Would you please let me know beside the application form and copy of passport and ARC is there any other necessary document?

Tomorrow I am going to send all document to my friend by DHL, so hopefully it will just go fine.

Thanks agin. I appreciate your kindness.

Sorry for the delayed response - my wife and I had our state-side wedding and reception this weekend, so things have been (happily) hectic.

Here is the application form for the Korean National Police Certificate. Also attached is the Power of Attorney template provided by the Korean National Police Agency; this document is all in Korean, and unfortunately my Korean is not good enough to be able to translate and explain it; hopefully you know someone who could help you with that? (If not then I could give it a try, but I can't give any guarantees as to the veracity of any translation and/or instruction I'd be able to provide.

Best of luck obtaining your documents!

(files converted from .hwp files retrieved from the 3rd tab of https://minwon.police.go.kr/#customerCenter/fileDown)

[BuntyHoven 1]

Happy to help - my wife and I were lucky enough to receive a lot of help from others, so it's nice to be able to do the same for others =]

According to http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/security/police-cert/asia-pacific/korea-south.asp, it seems you may need to send a passport size photo and a copy of your entry/exit record from Korean immigration (which your friend in Korea apparently should be able to obtain for you if you fill in another consent form from the HiKorea website; after a quick look on the website I haven't yet found the form, but maybe your friend might be able to locate it).

Thank you very much for your reply and the forms. It is a relief having the forms. There is a Korea lady working in the same building as I, I have to say hello and ask her help

I have a question. Would you please let me know beside the application form and copy of passport and ARC is there any other necessary document?

Tomorrow I am going to send all document to my friend by DHL, so hopefully it will just go fine.

Thanks agin. I appreciate your kindness.

[rezasorna 1]

I hope I will be able to pass the favour to others, same as you are doing

I too could not find that consent form for entry/exit record in HiKorea. I will use Korean consulate generic template for power of attorney and make a separate power of attorney form for entry/exit record. Tomorrow I will get it notarized in Korean consulate and send it to him. I hope it works.

The information in CIC website sometimes are no accurate or up to date. In your case you didn't submit this entry/exit record, am I right?

By the way, one last question, In the police form there is a field (Method) with 3 options: Read Only , Korean Check Reply , and English Check Reply . Do you know what it means?

Thanks again for your help

Happy to help - my wife and I were lucky enough to receive a lot of help from others, so it's nice to be able to do the same for others =]

According to http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/security/police-cert/asia-pacific/korea-south.asp, it seems you may need to send a passport size photo and a copy of your entry/exit record from Korean immigration (which your friend in Korea apparently should be able to obtain for you if you fill in another consent form from the HiKorea website; after a quick look on the website I haven't yet found the form, but maybe your friend might be able to locate it).

[rezasorna 1]

Thanks again! I hope I can pass the favour to other the same as you are doing

You are right. I also could not find that entry/exit record from hiKorea website. I will use generic power of attorney form from Korean consulate and type" obtaining entry/exit record" I hope it works. Sometime information in Canadian CIC website is outdated.

By the way, in your case, did you submit this entry/exit record?

I have one last question. In the police form that you kindly sent me, there is a field called Method and there are 3 options: Read only, Korean Check Reply, and English Check Reply. Do you what it means and which one I should choose?

Thanks a lot for your help.

Happy to help - my wife and I were lucky enough to receive a lot of help from others, so it's nice to be able to do the same for others =]

According to http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/security/police-cert/asia-pacific/korea-south.asp, it seems you may need to send a passport size photo and a copy of your entry/exit record from Korean immigration (which your friend in Korea apparently should be able to obtain for you if you fill in another consent form from the HiKorea website; after a quick look on the website I haven't yet found the form, but maybe your friend might be able to locate it).

[BuntyHoven 1]

Failing to be accurate and up to date unfortunately seems to be a common trait among governmental websites *sigh*

You are correct: I didn't have to submit an entry/exit record to obtain the background check when I was living in Korea.

On the police form I checked both "Korean Check Reply" and "English Check Reply" in order to get a certificate with both English and Korean on it. "Read Only" is for people who only want to view the record at the police station without receiving a printed copy.

Good luck!

[EDIT - the Korean language version of the HiKorea site seems to have more forms available for download; maybe someone could find the consent form somewhere here.]

I hope I will be able to pass the favour to others, same as you are doing

I too could not find that consent form for entry/exit record in HiKorea. I will use Korean consulate generic template for power of attorney and make a separate power of attorney form for entry/exit record. Tomorrow I will get it notarized in Korean consulate and send it to him. I hope it works.

The information in CIC website sometimes are no accurate or up to date. In your case you didn't submit this entry/exit record, am I right?

By the way, one last question, In the police form there is a field (Method) with 3 options: Read Only , Korean Check Reply , and English Check Reply . Do you know what it means?

Thanks again for your help

Edited August 6, 2015 by BuntyHoven

[rezasorna 1]

Thank you very much! I appreciate your help.

Failing to be accurate and up to date unfortunately seems to be a common trait among governmental websites *sigh*

You are correct: I didn't have to submit an entry/exit record to obtain the background check when I was living in Korea.

On the police form I checked both "Korean Check Reply" and "English Check Reply" in order to get a certificate with both English and Korean on it. "Read Only" is for people who only want to view the record at the police station without receiving a printed copy.

Good luck!

[EDIT - the Korean language version of the HiKorea site seems to have more forms available for download; maybe someone could find the consent form somewhere here.]

[rezasorna 1]

Unfortunately bad news!

I sent power of attorney and all the documents to my Korean friend, but it seems he is too busy to go and get it. Worse he is going to a business trip in a couple of days. I cannot count on him.

As a desperate measure I contacted a few law firms in Korea. The minimum price they asked so far is 1000,000 Korean won which is approximately 1200 dollars.

I think I have to just pay, otherwise I will miss my deadline here which comes in 3 weeks.

It sucks but I cannot think about any other solution. If you know an alternative, I'll be very grateful if you share.

Thanks a lot!