Spouse's Children to Be Labeled as Household Members... Family Relationship Records for Blended Families to Change

Legislative Notice for Amendments to the Resident Registration Act
Blended Families: Improved Indication of Head of Household and Relationships
Foreign Nationals: Both Korean and Romanized Names to Be Displayed

Going forward, the method of indicating family relationships on resident registration certificates will be improved so that the status of blended families is not revealed by the way the head of household and relationships are recorded.

On November 12, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced that it will release for legislative notice the amendments to the Enforcement Decree and Rules of the Resident Registration Act reflecting these changes.

Under the new amendments, only the minimum necessary personal information will be displayed on resident registration certificates to prevent unnecessary exposure of personal details and protect privacy. Family members other than the spouse of the head of household (such as parents, grandparents, siblings, etc.) will be labeled as "household members," while others will be labeled as "cohabitants." Previously, if someone remarried and lived with children from a previous marriage, the resident registration certificate would list the children as "spouse's children," which could reveal the fact of remarriage.

Details of the "Amendment to the Enforcement Decree and Rules of the Resident Registration Act" announced for legislative notice by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. Ministry of the Interior and Safety

Once the law is amended, the spouse's children will simply be recorded as household members. However, if the applicant wishes, the previous method of specifying detailed family relationships can still be used on the certificate.

The Ministry will also provide guidelines so that applicants can select only the information relevant to their purpose when requesting certificates, and will promote the avoidance of unnecessary personal information requests in both the private and public sectors.

Foreign nationals will be able to have both their Korean and Romanized names displayed on resident registration certificates. Until now, foreign nationals' names were written in Korean on family relationship documents and only in Roman letters on resident registration certificates, making it difficult to prove that the two documents referred to the same person. In addition, the process for applying for the "Notification of Move-in Report Service" and the required documents for move-in reports will be simplified. This service notifies individuals via text message if someone files a move-in report for an address or property they own or rent.

During the legislative notice period, which runs from November 13 to December 23, the Ministry will collect feedback from the public, relevant agencies, and various stakeholders to reflect in the final amendments. The proposed amendments can be viewed in the official gazette and the National Legislative Participation Center. Opinions on the amendments can be submitted by mail, fax, or through the National Legislative Participation Center.