I have selected one change to the Resident Registration system effective from today, two legislative notices announced on Wednesday, October 28, and one pilot project for visa issuance by the Ministry of Justice. This information is essential for those who frequently obtain resident registration certificates, seniors who own land, business owners with livestock barns, warehouses, or temporary buildings, and those in the industry attracting Mongolian group tours.
Today’s Key Highlights
- Starting Thursday, October 29, resident registration certificates (deungbon and chobon) will indicate family members other than the householder and spouse as “household member” (sedaewon), and others as “cohabitant” (donggeoin).
- An “Integrated Cadastral Certificate” combining the Land Ledger, Forest Ledger, Cadastral Map, and Forest Map will be newly established; a legislative notice has been issued to exempt on-site issuance fees for land owned by individuals aged 65 and older (Comments accepted until December 7).
- A legislative notice has been issued for the Enforcement Decree of the Building Act to include livestock barns, warehouses, and crop cultivation facilities of 200㎡ or more, as well as market arcades and road awning facilities, under the scope of structural safety confirmation (Comments accepted until December 11).
1. Implementation of “Household Member” Designation in Resident Registration Copies; Korean and Romanized Names for Foreigners to be Recorded Together
- What is changing: The amendments to the Enforcement Decree and Enforcement Rules of the Resident Registration Act, announced in the September 30 briefing, take effect today.
- Relationship Designation: On the certificates, family members who are not the householder or the spouse will be marked as “household member” (sedaewon), and other individuals will be marked as “cohabitant” (donggeoin). This aims to reduce notations that reveal specific family relationships, such as “child of spouse,” “stepfather,” or “stepmother.”
- General vs. Detailed Distinction: Unless specifically requested by the submitting institution, applicants will be guided to obtain the “General” version; however, “Detailed” certificates, which list specific family relationships, can still be issued as before if needed.
- Foreigner Names: The Korean name and the Romanized name of a foreigner can now be shown together on the resident registration certificate (deungbon).
- Moving-in Report Documents: Through the use of administrative information sharing, the required documents for moving-in reports and applications for the service of notifying moving-in facts will be reduced.
- Who is affected: Anyone who obtains resident registration certificates, remarried families, and households with foreign spouses.
- Effective date: Effective from Thursday, October 29, 2026 (Promulgated on April 28).
- Administrative Agent’s Note: For documents where family relationships must be verified, such as visa or permit applications, a “General” copy may not reveal the necessary relationships, which could lead to requests for supplementation. Please first check if the instructions from the submitting office specify “Detailed” or “Display Family Relationships.” For marriage immigration or invitation documents, obtaining a copy with both Korean and Romanized names will make identity verification much easier.
- Source: Korea Policy Briefing · Ministry of the Interior and Safety: “Household Member” Designation in Resident Registration Copies from the 29th of this month (October 28)
2. Establishment of Integrated Cadastral Certificate; Exemption of On-site Issuance Fees for Land Owned by Individuals Aged 65 and Older
- What is changing: The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has issued a legislative notice for the amendment to the Enforcement Rules of the Act on the Establishment and Management of Spatial Information (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Notice No. 2026-1349).
- Integrated Cadastral Certificate: A basis (Proposed Article 74, Paragraphs 5 and 6, and Form No. 71-5) will be established to allow the viewing and issuance of the Land Ledger, Forest Ledger, Cadastral Map, and Forest Map—which were previously issued separately—as a single certificate.
- Standardization of Forms: The current horizontal format of cadastral records will be changed to a vertical format, similar to other real estate certificates.
- Fee Exemption: Currently, online viewing and issuance are free, while on-site viewing and issuance at government offices cost 300 to 700 KRW per case. The amendment will exempt fees when a person aged 65 or older views cadastral records or issues certified copies of land they own.
- Who is affected: Seniors aged 65 and older who own land, and those preparing applications for land transactions, development activity permits, or agricultural land-related matters.
- Effective date: Date to be determined (Stage: Legislative notice; comments accepted until Monday, December 7, 2026).
- Administrative Agent’s Note: In applications for permits such as development activity permits or agricultural land conversion, the Land Ledger and Cadastral Map are often submitted together. Even after implementation, you must check the required document list for each specific task to see if the receiving institution will accept one Integrated Cadastral Certificate in place of the two documents; until then, please continue to issue them separately as you do now.
- Source: National Participatory Legislation Center · Legislative Notice of the Partial Amendment to the Enforcement Rules of the Act on the Establishment and Management of Spatial Information (October 28)
3. Livestock Barns and Warehouses of 200㎡ or More Require Structural Safety Confirmation; Stricter Rules for Extending Temporary Buildings
- What is changing: Following the damage caused by heavy snowfall in late November 2024, where warehouses, livestock barns, rain shelters, and awning facilities that were previously exempt from structural standards collapsed, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has announced a proposed amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Building Act (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Notice No. 2026-1346).
- Temporary Buildings: Market arcades used by the public, road awning facilities, and other temporary buildings as determined by local ordinances will be included in the scope of structural safety confirmation.
- Extension of Permitted Period: For temporary buildings that have received structural safety confirmation, structural safety must be confirmed again before the permitted period is extended for the second time or more.
- Buildings Vulnerable to Heavy Snow: Livestock barns, warehouses, and crop cultivation facilities measuring 200㎡ or more will be included in the scope of structural safety confirmation.
- Who is affected: Livestock farmers, farmers and business owners building warehouses or vinyl house-type cultivation facilities, traditional market merchant associations, and property owners planning to extend the permitted period of a temporary building.
- Effective date: The implementation date is undecided (Current stage: Legislative notice; submission of opinions is accepted until Friday, December 11, 2026). ⚠️ Whether this applies to buildings already constructed requires verification of the original text.
- Administrative Agent’s Note: Once subject to structural safety confirmation, structural verification documents must be submitted during the building permit or notification process, which will increase design costs and duration. If you are planning to start construction on a livestock barn or warehouse next year, please set your schedule after reviewing the implementation date and transitional measures. If you are about to report an extension of a temporary building’s permitted period, please check how many times you have extended it so far.
- Source: National Participatory Legislation Center · Legislative Notice of the Partial Amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Building Act (October 28)
4. Pilot Implementation of Group Visa (C-3-2 Short-term Visit) for Mongolian Group Tourists for One Year Starting October 30
- What is changing: The Ministry of Justice will pilot the C-3-2 (Short-term Visit) group visa system for Mongolian group tourists.
- Eligibility: Groups of 5 or more travelers recruited by 7 local specialized travel agencies selected by the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Mongolia.
- Scope of Stay: Travel within Korea is permitted for up to 15 days.
- Operational Direction: During the pilot period, operations will focus on corporate incentive/training group tourists and school trip groups.
- Management: The Korea Immigration Service will pre-verify lists to ensure that individuals with entry restrictions or histories of illegal stay are not mixed in, and administrative sanctions will be imposed on specialized travel agencies if any travelers abscond.
- Who is affected: Mongolian group tourists, and the domestic travel industry and local governments attracting Mongolian corporate incentive/training trips or school trips.
- Effective date: Pilot implementation from Friday, October 30, 2026, to Sunday, October 31, 2027. Formal introduction and expansion of targets will be reviewed based on the pilot results.
- Administrative Agent’s Note: Since this visa system is structured so that applications can only be made through local specialized travel agencies, it is not a route for domestic inviting companies to apply individually. If the purpose of the training or visit is not group tourism but business or education, you must separately verify whether a different status of residence is appropriate.
- Source: Korea Policy Briefing · Ministry of Justice: Group Visa System for Mongolian Group Tourists Launched (October 28)
Deadlines to Watch This Week
- October 29 (Thursday): Implementation of ‘household member/cohabitant’ designation on resident registration certificates.
- October 30 (Friday): Start of the pilot implementation of the Group Visa for Mongolian Group Tourists.
- December 7 (Monday): Deadline for submitting opinions on the proposed amendment to the Enforcement Rules regarding the establishment of the Integrated Cadastral Certificate.
- December 11 (Friday): Deadline for submitting opinions on the proposed amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Building Act (Expansion of Structural Safety Confirmation).
This briefing is a summary organized by the Hwang Yunsang Administrative Agent Office based on public data. For application to individual cases, verification with the competent authorities is required.