November 19, 2023

REF: U.S. Embassy & Consulate In The Republic Of Korea 'GETTING MARRIED IN KOREA'

Documents needed for U.S. Citizens getting married in Korea

The documents listed below are required by the Korean government, as you will be married under the laws of Korea.

• PROOF OF UNITED STATES CITIZENSHIP: A valid United States passport is sufficient to prove you are a U.S. citizen for the purpose of marriage.
• PHOTOGRAPHIC PROOF OF IDENTITY such as the US passport, driver’s license, military I.D., etc
• A COMPLETED AFFIDAVIT OF ELIGIBILITY FOR MARRIAGE, affirming that you are free and eligible to marry. Forms are available at the U.S. Embassy at the time of your appointment.
• If the American Citizen is under the age of 19, written permission to marry from both parents is required.
  
  

DOCUMENTS NEEDED FOR NON-U.S. CITIZENS FOR GETTING MARRIED IN KOREA

If your fiancé/fiancée is Korean, please check with the ward or city office nearest you for guidance. One thing you will definitely need is the Family Registry

STEPS FOR GETTING MARRIED IN KOREA

These steps, as will all the information on this page, is ALWAYS subject to change, so always check the U.S. Embassy website as listed at the top of this page.

• For each American citizen applying for marriage, bring all of the documents listed above for U.S. citizens to the Embassy. The Embassy will review all of your documents and notarize your Affidavit of Eligibility for Marriage. The fee for this notarization is USD $50. Only American citizens need to come to the Embassy for this step in the process.
• Translate the notarized affidavit. Be sure to include translator’s signature and date of translation (note: this translation is required only when you are getting married to a Korean national). It does not have to be an official translation.
• You and your fiancé/fiancée are required to bring the notarized copy of the Affidavit of Eligibility of Marriage, along with other documents required by the Korean government, to your local district office (called Gu Cheong in Korean) to report and register your marriage. Please note that you will need to provide the names, addresses and signatures of two individuals as “witnesses” on the Korean application for marriage form. In general, witnesses are not required to appear at the local district office. However, it may vary by local district office. Therefore, we suggest you contact the local district office directly where you wish to report and register your marriage for the latest information including the requirement for witnesses.
• The local district office will provide you with a “Certificate of Marriage Registration” (수리증명서, pronounced soo-ree jeung-myung-suh). When both of the marriage partners are U.S. citizens, they will receive this certificate form right away. However, if one spouse is a Korean citizen, this process can take up to 3-5 days, and will be reflected on the Korean marriage certificate (혼인관계증명서, pronounced hone-in-gwan-gae jeung-myung-suh).

OPTIONAL STEP - Document Translations:
The “Certificate of Marriage Registration” document will be in Korean. If you need to have the “Certificate of Marriage Registration” document translated into English and notarized, please note that the Embassy cannot provide this service. The Korean Government will apostille marriage documents at their Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA).

MOFA Address:
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
60, Sajik-ro 8-gil, Jongno-gu
Seoul, Republic of Korea
Postal Code 03172

MOFA Telephone Numbers:
Phone: +82-2-2100-2114
FAX: +82-2-2100-7999

NOTE:
If you need the apostille to use for an official purpose, please remember that it is up to the requesting authorities to make a determination on whether the apostilled document is acceptable.

DEERS Enrollment

Documents, Translations, Apostille, TIN, FIN and ITIN

To enroll your Korean spouse in DEERS the Korean Marriage License must be translated to English and have an Apostille. The sponsor can enroll a spouse without the spouse being present, but the spouse must present to be issued an ID card. The spouse must have two (2) forms of valid ID. The two forms of ID cannot both be Foreign ID's i.e. Korea Drivers License and KID card. A Korea Passport is ok, as it is not considered a Foreign ID.

If the new spouse does not have an SSN or ITIN, the DEERS/RAPIDS system will automatically assign a PID (Personal Identifier) to the spouse. That PID can either be a TIN or a FIN. The VO will select which one. DEERS/RAPIDS DOES NOT issue Tax ID Numbers (ITIN). An ITIN is not a TIN. An ITIN must be applied for via the IRS.

What is an ITIN, and how does it work?

An Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) is a 9-digit number the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issues to people filing a tax return who are not U.S. citizens and who do not have, or are not eligible for a Social Security number. You can only use your ITIN for tax reporting purposes.  Learn more about ITINs on the IRS website

How to apply for an ITIN

To learn details on applying for an ITIN visit the IRS website at https://www.irs.gov/individuals/how-do-i-apply-for-an-itin