Applying for naturalization permission — you submit the documents all at once

📌 Key points

You submit at the immigration office or branch office with jurisdiction (including sub-offices). The application is attached form No. 2, and the documents to attach differ from person to person — they depend on whether it is general or simplified naturalization, and on whether you have a Korean spouse. The office checks the alien registration record and the entry and exit record itself, so if you give your consent you do not have to submit them.

🔢 Do these in order

1. Check which path applies to you. There are General Naturalization (Nationality Act Article 5), Simplified Naturalization (Article 6), and Special Naturalization (Article 7). The documents required differ by path, but there is something you should know first. General naturalization requires that you already hold Permanent Residency (F-5) status to apply (Act Article 5(1-2)). If you go to apply for general naturalization directly from Residence (F-2) or another status, your application will not be accepted. Simplified and special naturalization do not have this requirement — Article 6(1) of the Act removes it. Those applying through marriage to a Korean spouse fall under simplified naturalization, so they do not need permanent residency status. If you're unsure which path applies to you, ask 1345.
2. Fill in the naturalization application form (attached form No. 2). You download it from the Hi Korea form library, or receive it at the civil service room of the office.
3. Gather the items under 'What to bring' below, to match your case. Documents that have to be obtained in your home country take time, so start with those first.
4. Submit the application and the documents together at the immigration office with jurisdiction. Nationality work is by appointment only.
5. The office completes its searches, investigation and checks, and sends the case to the Minister of Justice. During this process you may be asked to attend and state your view, or to submit further material, and your place of residence may also be inspected in person.
6. If approved, the immigration office (출입국·외국인관서) will notify you by phone and set a date for you to attend the naturalization certificate award ceremony together with you. At the ceremony, you take the citizen's oath and receive your certificate of nationality; that is when you become a citizen of the Republic of Korea. The ceremony location and date vary by office, so there is no fixed date set in advance. If your contact phone number has changed, let the office know.

📍 Where to go

The immigration office or branch office with jurisdiction, or its sub-office (nationality work is by appointment only)

💻 Open Hi Korea — download the application form from the form library

What to bring

• Naturalization Application & Passport Copy
  The application is attached form No. 2. The passport copy is submitted as a 'document proving that you are a foreign national' (Rules Article 3(2), item 1).
• Letter of recommendation (2 or more Korean nationals)Optional
  Submitted by people applying by general naturalization (Article 5 of the Nationality Act) (Rules Article 3(2), item 4). It is not submitted for simplified naturalization, or for special naturalization where a parent is a Korean national.
• Certificate of Income & Employment CertificateOptional
  This is one of the documents proving that you can support yourself — for general naturalization a certificate of income amount, and for simplified naturalization a certificate of employment, belong here (Rules Article 3(2), item 2, 가1) and 나3)).
• Proof of Financial Assets (Bank Balance Certificate)Optional
  This is one of the documents proving that you can support yourself — 60 million won or more for general naturalization, 30 million won or more for simplified naturalization (Rules Article 3(2), item 2, 가2)3) and 나1)2)). Either this or the income document above is enough.
• Korean Spouse Family & Marriage Relation CertificateOptional
  Submitted only by people applying as the spouse of a Korean national (Rules Article 3(2), item 8). If you married abroad and the marriage is not recorded in your spouse's family relation register, a document proving the fact of the marriage takes its place.
• Home Country Family Relationship Proof (Notarized Translation)Optional
  Submitted in the cases where you have to prove your relationship with a parent, an adoptive parent or a spouse (Rules Article 3(2), items 5, 6, 7, 10 and 11). A notarized Korean translation is needed.
• Criminal Record Certificate from Home CountryOptional
  You submit it if the Minister of Justice considers it necessary (Rules Article 6-2). It has to be obtained in your home country, so it takes a long time — please prepare it early.

See also

• Renunciation of Foreign Nationality or Pledge Not to Exercise Foreign Nationality (외국국적불행사 서약)
• Where can I check whether I have unpaid amounts
• When your marriage ends — what happens to your stay and naturalization
• Social Integration Program (KIIP) application — where and how to start

Basis

• 국적법 시행령 제3조(귀화허가의 신청) 제1항·제2항 (법제처 국가법령정보센터 — 현행 판(시행 2022-12-20 그대로) 2026-10-05 대조)
• 국적법 시행규칙 제3조(귀화허가 신청서의 서식 및 첨부서류) 제1항~제5항 (법제처 국가법령정보센터 — 현행 시행 2026-10-02 판으로 2026-10-05 대조 · 이 조문은 그 개정에 안 걸림(2026-10-02 개정은 별지 서식 문구뿐))
• 국적법 시행규칙 제6조의2(본국 범죄경력증명서 등의 제출) (법제처 국가법령정보센터 — 현행 시행 2026-10-02 판으로 2026-10-05 대조 · 이 조문은 그 개정에 안 걸림(2026-10-02 개정은 별지 서식 문구뿐))
• 국적법 시행령 제4조(귀화 요건 심사를 위한 조회ㆍ조사ㆍ확인 등) 제1항·제2항 (법제처 국가법령정보센터 — 현행 판(시행 2022-12-20 그대로) 2026-10-05 대조)
• 현직 귀화 면접관 직접 확인 (카카오톡 문답, 2026-09-07)
• 국적법 시행규칙 제3조(귀화허가 신청서의 서식 및 첨부서류) 제2항 (법제처, 시행 2024-04-29)
• 국적법 시행규칙 제6조의2(본국 범죄경력증명서 등의 제출) (법제처, 시행 2024-04-29)

This content was checked on 2026-10-03.