Korean Job Discussion Forums

[PeteMoses]

Being the apparent idiot I am, my passport has decided to part company with me.
I've looked into getting the replacement from Hong Kong and it all looks fairly straightforward. Just wanting to know if anyone out there has had to do this before, and if they had any problems or advice that might help me out before I send away the forms and money.
Specifically, was it difficult to get a replacement E2?
Oh, and also, if anyone stumbles upon a lonely UK passport, lemme know yeah?!

[jomiro]

sorry mate,
i havent had to do it.. but what comes to my mind is, why do you have to go to hong kong?
cant you get a new passport issued at the british embassy in seoul?
just got a new passport here from my embassy. If i hadnt had my old passport, a birth certificate would have been what i had needed to apply for a new one.

your employer should still have the visa number you needed when you got the visa, so maybe they can retrack it and issue you another one. if not, it might be possible that you have to get a new visa issued (with all the hassle that comes with it).

[SeoulSister08]

A few years ago I lost my passport in Costa Rica. I just went to the American Embassy and they had a replacement for me in about an hour. It cost $100.00 USD and the passport was only good for a year. I had to file a police report before having it replaced. Not exactly the same situation but I hope that helps.

[b-class rambler]

I don't think you have to physically go to Hong Kong yourself, but your application needs to be sent there. The British Embassy in Seoul (like a few others in East Asia, including Tokyo) has now stopped issuing passports and all the passport issues for this part of the world are now done in Hong Kong.
Perhaps the Seoul British Embassy will still take your application, but you probably have to pay them to send it to Hong Kong and back.

Apparently, the reason is the cost of the technology required for biometric passports. It was considered a waste for that to be installed at each East Asian embassy.

[PeteMoses]

hey guys, thanks for the responses. Sorry, I should have mentioned that I didn't mean physically going to Hong Kong, rather if anyone had any experience sending their stuff there. We all know what it's like to send off a pile of stuff, only to be told you didn't need half of it and the stuff you actually need you were never told about etc etc.
Thanks for the input so far!

[Caffeinated]

Lost your Brit passport? I'm sure Mossad would like to thank you for enabling one of their agents to perform their duties.

[deegirl7]

Hey...same thing happened to me just recently. You can get a new passport at the UK Embassy here in Seoul, you dont have to send stuff to HK. You will need to file a police report here in Korea
(take a Korean with you, it halfs the time!) then take that, with passport photos, and cash to the embassy at City Hall. (or post - look on their website). You will need to get someone to sign the back of your photos to confirm the 'true likeness' of you - someone with a UK passport I think. My passport was replaced within a week.

Sorry my E2 is in my Nz passport
(the joys of 2 passports!) so can't help you regarding that sorry.

[thomas pars]

wouldn't it just be easier to say it was lost and not stolen, then you would not have to file a police report?

[b-class rambler]

[MalFSU1]

My boyfriend lost his UK passport 2 months ago...while he was one of the last ones to be able to get it through the embassy in Seoul, it is very much true you have to go through Hong Kong now. Even though his was just lost he still had to get a police report done. We live in a small city, but they had a translator so it was quite painless and quick. The only hiccup he found was that the passport pictures he sent along the first time were too small, so they called and specified the exact size. As far as a new E2, just go to your provincial office of immigration, and tell them you need to get another multiple entry sticker for your passport and they'll do that for free for you since you are from the UK. Your E2 is in the system and combined with your ARC card , you don't need get a whole new Visa put into your passport.

Shouldn't be to painful a process aside from the pain to your wallet. Good luck

[gizmo]

I just had to do this last week.

First you have to get a police report...probably a good idea to take someone who speaks korean to help.

Then you need to download 2 forms, the lost passport form and the form you need to apply for a replacement passport. You also need 2 passport photos, one signed as a true likeness of you.

Once you have all this you have to go to the embassy in seoul.. i think the opening time for passport stuff is 9-12.30 (or post it) they will stamp the lost form and write some number on it. They also forward a copy of the police report to the embassy in hong kong.

You then have to send the 2 forms, photos and a photocopy of the police report to hong-kong. (and the credit card form for payment-you can download it from the hong-kong site)

Quite annoying you can't just go to seoul and do it anymore..they changed the system at the end of april. The girl at the embassy didn;t seem to sure and kept checking some list she had about the process. Don't have the new passport yet so hopefully did it all successfully!

[PeteMoses]

Top advice people, thanks a lot for your input. Getting onto it right now.