(1) Reasons for Proposal
The Registration of Korean Nationals Residing Abroad Act was amended (Act no. 16026; promulgated on December 24, 2018; to be enforced on December 25, 2019) to modify matters to be registered for overseas Korean nationals, prescribe electronic issuance of certified copies of overseas Korean national registration, and introduce systems for declaring returns to Korea and canceling registrations. Accordingly, this Amendment newly inserts detailed operating measures for declarations of return and cancellation of registrations, and prescribes measures to verify registered matters and matters concerning reports on changes and reports on changes of address or residence through the sharing of administrative information. It also sets forth application or declaration procedures by mail, facsimile or electronic mail, and prescribes other matters delegated by the Act and matters necessary for the enforcement thereof.

(2) Major Provisions
A. Application for registration by proxy (Article 2)
1) The current method of applying for overseas Korean national registration allows applications to be filed by a proxy from the same household, a term that is not clearly defined, thus creating inconsistencies across the affairs of diplomatic missions.
2) Accordingly, allow registrations to be filed on behalf of an overseas Korean national subject to registration by his or her spouse or a lineal blood relative, and prescribe grounds on which to check the Certificate of Family Registry through the sharing of administrative information.
B. Verification of registered matters (Article 2-2)
1) The current method of applying for overseas Korean national registration does not specify the types of documents to be submitted. This is problematic as each diplomatic mission requests different documents due to a lack of specific guidelines on the use of shared administrative information.
2) Accordingly, list the types of information that may be verified through the sharing of administrative information, such as the Certificate of Personal Records, certified copies of resident registration cards, and immigration certificates, and thereby prescribe grounds to enable the use of shared administrative information and make registration more convenient for overseas Korean nationals.
C. Electronic preparation/management of overseas Korean national registrations (Article 3 and Article 4)
Following the digitization of all diplomatic missions, prescribe that as a rule, all overseas Korean national registrations shall be processed electronically, and delete the provision that unnecessarily requires diplomatic missions of registration to submit copies of registrations to the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
D. Application for the issuance of certified copy of overseas Korean registration (Article 5)
Distinguish between applications for issuance filed by registered overseas Korean nationals and those filed by a proxy, etc. Specify that registered overseas Korean nationals may apply for issuance by mail or facsimile via other administrative agencies in Korea through the “Service Anywhere” or “Service Mail” system.
E. Issuance of certified copies of overseas Korean registration (Article 6)
1) Due to a lack of specific instructions on how to prepare a certified copy of overseas Korean registration and what information it should contain, the document is prepared based only on a template and this has created inconsistencies in affairs across the diplomatic missions.
2) Require certified copies of overseas Korean national registration to be prepared based on the records of the overseas Korean national registration, specify optional matters such as canceled information, and stipulate that certified copies may be issued under the name of either the Minister of Foreign Affairs or the head of the diplomatic mission of registration, thereby allowing heads of diplomatic missions that are not concerned with registration to issue certified copies of overseas Korean national registration prepared by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and with the approval thereof.
F. How to report on change and changes in address or residence (Article 7)
Specify matters to be verified by the head of the diplomatic mission of registration when a change or change in address or residence is reported. Allow any document that is verifiable through the sharing of administrative information to be verified in the same manner as registered matters.
G. Specify declarations of return and cancellation of registration (Article 7-2 and Article 7-3)
1) The amended Registration of Korean Nationals Residing Abroad Act newly inserts a system to allow the cancellation of registration when a declaration of return is filed or when a person has lost his or her Korean nationality or has died. This has created a need to prescribe detailed matters necessary for the enforcement thereof.
2) Prescribe that, as a rule, the Minister of Foreign Affairs shall receive declarations of return and cancel the relevant registrations. Allow diplomatic missions to receive and transfer the declarations and then verify and process them through the sharing of administrative information.
3) Allow the Minister of Foreign Affairs to cancel by direct authority the registration of persons subject to registration by examining such information as the content of declarations of return, deaths of registered overseas Korean nationals, immigration records, and loss of Korean nationality, etc., on a half-yearly basis.
H. Diversification of methods for application and reporting (Article 2, paragraph 4; Article 5, paragraph 4; Article 7, paragraph 6; Article 7-2, paragraph 4; Article 10)
1) The current system allows applications for registration, applications for issuance of a certified copy of overseas Korean national registration, reports on change, and reports on change in address or residence to be processed by mail, facsimile, or electronic documentation (received through main electronic mail channel). However, it does not prescribe specific methods, which has resulted in variations in application and reporting methods at the discretion of the diplomatic missions.
2) Allow the preparation of a system to receive applications and reports by mail or facsimile with respect to such factors as the nature of the applications and reports, postal systems in Korea and abroad. Fulfill the intent of the amended law by allowing not only applications and reports but also the issuance of certified copies of overseas Korean national registration to be handled in electronic document form via electronic service channels.
I. Newly insert procedures for information disclosure on registered overseas Korean nationals (Article 11)
Prescribe that where it is not possible to obtain prior consent from a registered overseas Korean national under Article 18 of the Personal Information Protection Act, a relative in Korea, after having given clear evidence of necessity due to urgent circumstances concerning the life, health, or property of the person concerned, may be provided with information on the overseas Korean national registration status of the person concerned and contact details in the country of sojourn by filing an application with the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
J. Newly insert procedures for correcting registrations (Article 12)
Prescribe provisions on the correction of registrations, which is not specified in the current Decree. Promote the accuracy of public records by prescribing that when a correction is made, details on and reasons for the correction shall be stated separately.