Korea, Republic of (South)

Procedures

If you are unable to provide a police certificate you must provide a separate statutory declaration in both English and your own language, detailing your attempts to obtain a police certificate and stating whether you and any accompanying family members have been found guilty or convicted of, or charged with offences against the law in that country, or have not been charged with any offences against the law of that country. This statutory declaration should also be corroborated by other information attesting to your character.

If police certificates become a year old from date of issue before a decision is made on an application, visa and immigration officers may request further police certificates. Further police certificates may also be requested within the 12 month period if there is good reason to do so.

The procedures for obtaining a police certificate for some countries state that the police authorities will only send the certificate direct to Immigration New Zealand. It is recommended that in such cases applicants should request their police certificate three months prior to lodging their application for a residence visa or permit. It is also recommended that such applicants provide Immigration New Zealand with a copy of the receipt for the requested police certificate (if this is available) to assist Immigration New Zealand in tracking their certificate.

Residence  

• All applicants aged 17 years or over are required to provide police certificates at the time a residence application is lodged unless there is a different instruction in the country-specific information (see below).
• If you have lived for periods of twelve months or more in any other countries during the last ten years, you must obtain additional police certificates from these countries, and also your country(ies) of citizenship unless you can provide satisfactory evidence that you have never lived there.
• Police certificates must be less than six months old at the time you lodge your residence application.

Temporary Entry Visa or Permit

• All applicants aged 17 years or over who are working, visiting or studying in New Zealand for twenty four months or longer are required to provide a police certificate.
• The police certificate is to be provided at the time you lodge your application unless there is a different instruction in the country-specific information (see below).
• Applicants must supply a police certificate from any country in which they have lived for 5 years or more since attaining the age of 17 years as well as their country(ies) of citizenship, unless they can provide satisfactory evidence that they have never lived there.

Specific procedure for Korea, Republic of (South)

(1) Korean nationals and other persons currently residing in the Republic of (South) Korea

Apply to: 

The Visa Officer
New Zealand Embassy
CPO Box 1059, Seoul
KOREA (100-610)

 

Korean nationals should provide:

1. one Korean version application form fully completed in Korean
2. two English version application forms fully completed in English
3. three identical passport sized photographs
4. Family Census Register no more than 2 months old at the time of application
5. Resident’s Registration no more than 2 months old at the time of application.

Non-Korean nationals should provide:

1. two English version application forms fully completed in English
2. two identical passport sized photographs
3. A certified copy of the biodata pages of the applicant’s current passport.

The forms are obtained from the New Zealand Embassy, Seoul.

Send all the above documents to the Visa Officer at the New Zealand Embassy in Seoul. The embassy will organise your police certificates and return them to you once they have been issued by the Korean authorities.

A pre-paid self addressed envelope is required if the applicant wishes to apply via the New Zealand Embassy in Seoul and wants to receive the result back by mail.

(2) Korean nationals and others who are residing in countries other than the Republic of (South) Korea

Approach the nearest Korean Embassy to obtain the application forms and further information on applying for the Republic of (South) Korea Police Certificate.