Korean Job Discussion Forums

[pray4thee]

I was born in Canada, and my parents were born in Korea. If I get a F4 visa does that mean I could be drafted into the Korean military?

[mindmetoo]

[pray4thee]

[Bulsajo]

What I'm about to post is second or third hand info, so all I'm saying is, you should check it out just to be sure:

I heard that the key here is what your family's registry in Korea says. So even though you were born in Canada, if somebody- your grandparents, for example- put you on the family roll in Korea, it could be a bit of a problem for you.

That's all I know.

[two roads]

Here's what the US Dept of State consular information sheet says:

DUAL NATIONALITY: The Government of the Republic of Korea does not recognize dual citizenship. An individual is a citizen of the Republic of Korea if his or her name appears on the Korean Family Census Register. The Korean Government requires persons with a claim to dual citizenship to choose or reject Korean nationality by December 31 of the year the individual turns 21 years old.

A person�s name is not automatically removed from the Korean Family Census Register simply because he or she is an American citizen. It is the obligation of an American citizen to inform the Korean government of his or her American citizenship for the purposes of removing his or her name from the Korean Family Census Register.

Any male whose name appears on the Korean Family Census Register must fulfill his two-year military obligation unless he has surrendered his Korean nationality before March 30 of the year he turns 18 years old. An American male in this situation must notify Korean authorities of his parents� immigration status, renounce his Korean citizenship, and remove his name from the Korean Family Census Register. If an American male fails to remove his name from the Korean Family Census Register, Korean authorities may require that he serve in the Korean military if he lives in Korea or visits Korea during conscription age (18 to 35 years of age).

Under a new law that went into effect on May 26, 2005, men who have dual citizenship may be required to serve in the military before they can give up their Korean citizenship. Women are not required to serve in the military.

The new law affects American men of Korean descent in different ways.

A Korean male, who was born in Korea, emigrates to the U.S. and becomes a naturalized American citizen, loses his Korean citizenship and therefore has no military obligations in Korea.
A male who was born in the U.S., whose Korean parents were U.S. citizens at the time of his birth, does not have Korean military obligations.
A male who was born in the U.S., whose name is on the Korean Family Census Register, and whose parents were not American citizens at the time of his birth but immigrated to and live in the U.S., is not obligated to serve in the Korean military if he renounces his Korean citizenship prior to March 30 of the year he turns 18 years of age.
A male who was born in the U.S. and is on the Korean Family Census Register, whose Korean citizen parents lived only temporarily outside Korea, may not renounce his Korean citizenship until he completes his service in the Korean military.
A U.S. citizen male who was born in and lives in Korea and is on the Korean Family Census Register may not renounce his Korean citizenship until he serves in the Korean military.
After fulfilling his military service, a dual national has two years to choose his nationality before he loses his Korean citizenship.
There have been several instances in which young American men of Korean descent -- who were born and lived all of their lives in the United States -- arrived in Korea as tourists only to be drafted into the Republic of Korea army. At least two of these cases involved individuals whose names had been recorded on the Korean Family Census Register, without their knowledge.


Sorry about the long post. If you want to read it yourself it's at:
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1018.html

Good luck.