Uncontested Divorce in Korea    

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Uncontested (mutually agreed-upon) divorce between a Korean national and a non-Korean:

Required Documents:
- A written agreement (or court ruling) regarding custody and legal guardianship of any children.  This document must detail child support arrangements, designate the custodial parent, and set forth visitation rights & methods thereof.
- A completed application form (obtained from the Seoul Family Court, located at Seoul National University of Education subway station).
- Each party’s Korean ID
- Your marriage certificate
- A copy of the Korean spouse’s family registry
- 3 copies of the “divorce report form” (also obtained from the Seoul Family Court)

Procedure:
1. The couple must report together at the family court and state that they wish to get a divorce.   They must submit the above-listed documents.  The couple may be advised to seek counseling with a certified marriage counselor.
2. Upon completion of step 1, the couple will be given a “guidance on divorce” session.
3. Approximately 1 month following steps 1 & 2 (3 months if children are involved), the couple will receive the court’s confirmation of their divorce.
4. Within 3 months of receiving this confirmation, the couple must file an attested (notarized) copy of this confirmation with their local gu-office (city or township office).
5. There is a small processing fee involved, please contact the Seoul Family Court Office for the most recent rates: 02-530-2450

For more information on family law, please check out the Korean Legal Aid website (choose “English” as the language from the main page, go to the Legal Info tab & select Family Law Basics). Or click on this Legal Aid link for divorce. 

Contested Divorce:
Apparently, there is no "general" procedure for a contested divorce.  Each party is expected to have everything handled by a lawyer (either privately hired or for free via legal aid).  In other words, like so much other stuff in this culture, a "middle man" (in this case a lawyer to represent each party), is required

K4E Note: Please note that the Korean legal and judiciary system is continuously changing, therefore, the above information should at best be considered as a rough guideline.  If your experience differs in any way from the above information, please notify us at info@korea4expats.com and share your experience.