From the 3rd, 'Emergency Passport Fee' Raised from 15,000 KRW to 53,000 KRW... 9 out of 10 Cases Last Year Due to Simple Negligence

Enforcement of the Revised Passport Act Enforcement Decree

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Starting from the 3rd, according to the revised Passport Act Enforcement Decree, the fee for issuing emergency passports (non-electronic single-entry passports) at locations such as the Incheon Airport Passport Service Center will be increased from the previous 15,000 KRW to 53,000 KRW.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that since the issuance fee for emergency passports (non-electronic single-entry passports) was lower than that of regular passports, they were being applied for indiscriminately, contrary to the original intent, resulting in many cases of careless passport management by our citizens. Therefore, the fee will be raised starting from the 3rd.

This measure follows the decision made at the Passport Policy Deliberation Committee held on September 19 to increase the emergency passport fee. However, if the Minister of Foreign Affairs recognizes that the travel purpose is due to urgent reasons such as the death or critical illness of a relative of the passport applicant, the fee applied will be 20,000 KRW (including a 5,000 KRW international exchange contribution).

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, emergency passports have been issued at departure airports for citizens with urgent reasons such as serious incidents involving family or relatives residing overseas. However, cases where emergency passports were applied for due to simple loss, failure to carry a passport at departure, or failure to check passport validity accounted for the majority of issued cases. Last year, these cases accounted for 88% of emergency passport issuances.

Through this revision of the Passport Act Enforcement Decree, it is expected that the awareness of passport management among our citizens will be enhanced, and the rate of passport loss will decrease. Additionally, the reduction in passport loss is anticipated to contribute to strengthening the international credibility of our passports.

An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained, "Going forward, the Ministry will continue efforts to expand domestic emergency passport issuance agencies and introduce more secure emergency passports to enhance and improve passport services for the public."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.