Korean Job Discussion Forums

[BackHOME]

Hey guys,

Here is my situation. Im in the states, was born here, citizen here.

1. Father's hojuk is still valid, he never renounced his citizenship from korea
2. I was born before he was naturalized in the US.
3. My mom got her citizenship here before I was born.
4. Im not on his hojuk, he never registered me.

I dont want to pay the visa cost if I have a good probability of getting denied my F4 visa. E2 visa is not an option due to various reasons.

Questions:

If I'm not on the Hojuk, then I'm not a citizen of Korea. So my concern is if I'm not on the hojuk, then theoretically I'm not a Korean citizen.

If I use my mom's info, can I get it through those means? She was naturalized before I was born.

Thanks for your advice people!

[winterfall]

[BackHOME]

Ok. So the way I see it, and correct me if I'm wrong, is if I am not on the hojuk, and my father renounces his citizenship now, I could still theoretically get my F4 after it is official on the hojuk that he renounced.

BUT...

His naturalization papers are after I was born, so I could still be in that gray area...

A person whose one side of parents or grandparents who once possessed Korean nationality, who have attained foreign nationalities.
- Passport and copy of passport(page with photo)
- A photo (size 3.5cm * 4.5cm)
- Application form
- Domestic Residence Report of Foreign National Korean
- Document which proves the fact that his or her immediate ascendant was a Korean citizen
- Basic registry of loss of Korean nationality (If removed after 1.1.2008)
or Certificate of loss of Korean nationality (If removed before 1.1.2008)
(China Koreans who don't have basic registry or certificate of removal from family registry are required to submit ID card of China or Hokuben and Overseas Koreans residing at former Soviet Union area are required to submit birth certificate and passport.)
- Document(s) which proves the reason, date, month and year of acquiring a foreign nationality of oneself and one's immediate descendants. (ex. copy of citizenship certificate)
- Document which proves the relation of ascendant and descendant (ex. birth certificate)
- Fee : 60,000 won(10,000 won for residence report card + 50,000 won for change of status)

I might be screwed here...Cuz he didn't become naturalized until after I was born. Variable is the renouncing of his citizenship now, and then having it show up on the hojuk that he renounced...

[dory]

???? you are not supposed to be a korean citizen, and you're not supposed to be on the hojuk. otherwise you'd be drafted and you wouldn't need a visa to enter the country (because you're a citizen -_-)
when your mom naturalized, did she renounce her korean citizenship or does she have dual?

[crsandus]

I suggest calling your nearest Korean Consulate and asking the questions directly.

[BackHOME]

Mom renounced and was a citizen before I was born. Apparently, that doesn't matter... I thought maybe I could use her instead cuz that would be legitimate.

I'll call the consulate tomorrow...

[winterfall]

I'm confused about what your worried about. If its military service. Your already born, it doesn't matter if your father renounces now or not. What matters is finding out if you have dual citizenship even though your not on the hojuk.

Good luck with the embassy

[methdxman]

[BackHOME]

So a little update on what the Korean Consulate said today...

I called both the Washington DC office and Chicago office. Washington DC said I was not eligible, the Chicago office said I was eligible, I just need to have my father renounce, as a long as I am not on the registry. Hope this helps someone in the future.

[IanChops]

[loubird]

We had a similar situation with my husband. His father still lives in Seoul, but he was reaised by his mom (who is a naturalized citizen) in the U.S.

Basically what the Seattle consulate told us was this:

If we get a copy of:

my husband's birth certificate
my husband's mom's naturalization papers
my husband's mom's family's hojuk (to prove beyond the shadow of a doubt that she was from Korea-- not sure why the naturalization papers weren't enought).

They also told us just not to mention the father, to pretend they were estranged, because I guess if you still have a parent who is a Korean citizen, you cannot get an F4. An F4 is for ethnic Koreans who otherwise do not have a strong tie to the country (i.e. a parent who is still a citizen).

Hope this helped.

[nathanrutledge]

I think I posted this on another one of your threads, but I know a guy who is in a similar situation. Father didn't renounce before he was born, so they say he's a citizen. He asked for a passport and they said that he wasn't a citizen because he wasn't in the books. So he asked for the F4, and was denied, and it went in a giant circle.

Also, Chicago is the consulate - it answers to the consulate - Washington, D.C., so if D.C. says no, and Chicago says yes, Washington's answer carries more weight.

Of course, there could be some language barriers/difficulty in understanding, but be careful. You could be ineligible by the law, but get it anyway because someone isn't paying attention, but if you tell them something that disqualifies you, then you're definitely out of the running, so be careful.

[BackHOME]

OK. So what I'm gunna do is use my mom's information because she became a citizen before I was born. My dad wasn't a citizen until after I was born. So it should be legit if I use my mom's information. Father didn't renounce until after I was born...

I hope this works...

[BackHOME]

Loubird. Were you successful in gaining the F4 for your husband, or are you still in the process of getting his F4?

[loubird]

We actually weren't, but we would have been.... Basically it took so long to get copy of the registry(it was shipped by his uncle from Korea) that by the time we took all the paperwork to the consulate we had one day to get everything finished-- interview and all before flying to Korea the next morning--it was very hectic. The lady was really nice and agreed to rush the process, but when she looked at our paperwork her face fell and she told us that the uncle had sent the wrong registry paperwork. My husband's uncle had sent us the general "family" page of the registry (with all her siblings' names etc), but we needed a more specific document that was just about his mother-- like a personal registry page.

So... we flew out the next morning with all of the documents, but no visa for him. Because we had one-way tickets, he needed a letter or support from our recruiter promising that he had a job, just no visa yet. They miraculously let him on the plane. Once we arrived in Korea, his school thought it would just be easier if he got his E2, so he flew to Guam and got one.

It was a huge hassle and that's how we learned not to put things off until the last minute. But-- it would have worked had we had that more specific registry page when we went to the consulate.