비전 아포코리아
Document guide · Family & marriage
AcceptedPublic document (issued by the Supreme Court)
Apostille for a Korean Basic Certificate: submitting it abroad
The Basic Certificate is a public document issued by the Supreme Court that certifies your own birth, death and nationality details, and it receives an apostille without notarization. If the receiving body needs your family composition, first check whether the Family Relation Certificate is the right document.
This page covers documents issued in Korea. For documents issued in another country, see our guide to documents issued abroad. →
Operated by Vision Administrative Office · Representative administrative agent Lee Won-jung · Content checked 2026-10-09 · Not sure which certification you need? Find Your Path
Who this is for and request status
- A Basic Certificate issued in Korea for submission to an Apostille Convention country — accepted
- Submission to a non-member country — consular confirmation followed by embassy legalization (pre-review)
- Submissions that require the history of acquiring or recovering nationality — accepted after checking whether a detailed certificate is needed
Request status — Accepted: standard procedure, we proceed directly · Pre-review: we check the document and receiving body first, then confirm whether we can proceed and quote · Information only: guidance on this page, handled by individual consultation
What to confirm before requesting: Basic Certificate
| Item | What to confirm |
|---|---|
| General vs detailed | The general certificate shows current matters such as birth, death and loss of nationality; the detailed certificate adds history such as acquisition or recovery of nationality. Choose according to the entries the receiving body requires. |
| Difference from the Family Relation Certificate | The Family Relation Certificate proves family composition (parents, spouse, children); the Basic Certificate proves your own civil status. Mixing them up means getting a new certificate. |
| English issuance | Whether the Basic Certificate itself can be issued in English is confirmed before we accept the request. The court’s certificate in English is not an English version of the Basic Certificate. |
| Translation language | Whether a translation into the destination country’s language, and a notarized translation, is required is confirmed for each receiving body. |
Issuance and what to prepare
- Where it is issued
- Supreme Court Electronic Family Relationship Registration System, Government24, local district offices
- Online issuance
- Available. Free online; KRW 1,000 per copy at an office (Government24).
- Who can apply
- You, your spouse or lineal relatives; a proxy needs a delegation (same as the Family Relation Certificate).
- What to send us
- Document name, destination country and the receiving body’s instructions. Originals and ID documents only at the step that needs them.
Procedure — what you do and what we do
What you do
- Check whether the receiving body requires the general or detailed certificate.
- Obtain it yourself or ask us to obtain it.
- Accept the confirmed quote and pay.
What Vision ApoKorea does
- We check that the entries match the purpose of submission.
- If needed, we translate and arrange notarization of the translation by proxy.
- We apply for the Overseas Koreans Agency apostille (the Korean-language Basic Certificate is eligible for online e-Apostille issuance).
- We send the completed documents by your chosen method.
Service scope
| Service | Details | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Issuance on your behalf | Issuance with a delegation from the person concerned | Subject to conditions |
| Translation | When the receiving body requires a translation | Available |
| Notarization by proxy | Original needs no notarization · only the translation is notarized | Available |
| Certification filing | Overseas Koreans Agency apostille / non-member countries: consular confirmation | Available |
| Delivery | Pick-up, domestic courier or international delivery | Available |
Issuing and certifying authority rests with each official body; we file applications on your behalf and do not promise approval outcomes.
Service, cost and timing
Standard service
Apostille for family relation records
- Applies to
- One Basic Certificate issued in Korea, one copy, for submission to an Apostille Convention country
- Included
- Document check, Translation, Notarization by proxy, Certification filing
- Possible extra costs
- Issuance on your behalf, Translation and notarized translation (language, pages), Extra copies, International delivery, Embassy legalization for non-member countries, VAT
- Total
- Confirmed quote after we review your document — based on number of documents, language, pages, copies, certification scope and delivery address.
- Government fee
- KRW 1,000 per apostille (electronic revenue stamp; Overseas Koreans Agency, checked 2026-10-09) — separate from our fee
- Processing starts
- After you accept the confirmed quote and payment is confirmed; steps that need the original start on the day the original arrives
- Timing
- Our processing, government processing and delivery are quoted separately. We do not present government processing time as the total completion time.
- Delivery
- Pick-up, domestic courier or international delivery (shipping cost included in the quote by destination and method)
Cancellation and re-processing
If something has to be redone, we separate the cause as below. Who bears the cost in each case, and the cancellation and refund terms, are written in the confirmed quote and agreed before payment.
| Item | Example |
|---|---|
| Our processing error | Redo needed because of our mistake, such as a translation error or missing document |
| Change in your materials | The document, destination country or number of copies changes after the request |
| Additional requirement from the receiving body | The receiving body asks for another document, translation or certification |
Basic Certificate: frequently asked questions
Should I submit the Basic Certificate or the Family Relation Certificate?
A receiving body that checks your own civil status, such as birth and nationality, asks for the Basic Certificate; one that checks your relationship with parents, spouse or children asks for the Family Relation Certificate. If the document name in the instructions is unclear, send it to us and we will confirm.
Can the Basic Certificate be issued in English?
Whether the Basic Certificate itself can be issued in English is confirmed before we accept the request. If English is needed, one option is to translate the Korean certificate and notarize the translation.
Can the apostille for a Basic Certificate be obtained online?
Yes. The Korean-language Basic Certificate issued by the Supreme Court is eligible for online e-Apostille issuance. A notarized translation is not eligible online and is applied for in person or by post.
When is a detailed certificate needed?
When the receiving body must also check history such as acquisition or recovery of nationality. Submitting a detailed certificate when it is not needed discloses unnecessary personal information, so check the required scope first.
How is the cost set?
The government fee is KRW 1,000 per apostille. Our fee depends on translation, number of copies and delivery address and is given as a confirmed quote after we review your document.
Simple request: Basic Certificate
Your request has been received
Reference number
- Current status
- Received automatically — not yet reviewed by our staff.
- We will reply by
- Reply time
- Our staff will check and reply during business hours, Monday to Friday 09:30–17:30 (Korea time).
Next steps
- Our staff review the receiving body’s requirements and your document. If we need more information, we will ask first.
- We send a confirmed quote (scope, possible extra costs and a step-by-step schedule).
- If you accept the quote, we tell you how to pay (we send a payment link). Your request is confirmed once payment is confirmed.
- We update you at each stage: intake, review, filing for certification, completion and delivery.
If you contact us again by phone or email, please quote this reference number so we can continue with the same request. No cost is incurred before you receive and accept a quote.
Replies may be prepared with the help of machine translation.
Chat with us on KakaoTalk or WeChat
If you prefer a messenger, scan a QR code. On a phone, tap the QR code to open the app. If you already have a reference number, please include it.
Sources — official materials and date checked (2026-10-09)
- Overseas Koreans Agency — Apostille issuance procedure (eligible documents, notarization, proxy application, fees, processing time) [Korean] — www.oka.go.kr
- e-Apostille (apostille.go.kr) — documents eligible for online issuance [Korean] — www.apostille.go.kr
- Government24 — issuance of family relationship registration certificates [Korean] — www.gov.kr
- Supreme Court Electronic Family Relationship Registration System — certificates in English [Korean] — efamily.scourt.go.kr
- Act on the Registration, etc. of Family Relationships, Articles 14 and 15 [Korean] — www.law.go.kr
- Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Uruguay notice (2025-01-15) — notarization of company and private-school documents, separate notarization of translations [Korean] — overseas.mofa.go.kr
Points we could not confirm in official materials are not stated as fact and are marked 'to be confirmed for your receiving body and issuing country'. We update this page when official guidance changes.