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#1

Establishing Standards
for Writing Foreigners’ Names
「Standards for the Writing of Foreigners’ Names」
(Proposed by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety)
Administrative Announcement: August 29 – September 19



#2

Different documents issued by administrative agencies have different ways of writing a foreigner's name, causing various inconveniences for foreigners
in verifying their identity.
Case: Mr. Sawyer Tom*, a foreigner married to a Korean wife
*Sawyer (surname) Tom (given name)
Mr. Sawyer had difficulty verifying his identity because his name was written differently on each certificate.
He even had a hard time explaining that he was the same person when he submitted a certificate with only Roman letters (SAWYER TOM) and one with only Hangeul (소여톰).



#3
Standards for the Writing
of Foreigners’ Names
Writing foreigners’ names in Roman letters
<Roman Letters>
Surname ∨ Given names

Your surname should come first, followed by your given names, which should be written in all capital letters with a space between the surname and given names.
If you have a Romanized name from your resident card or immigration documents*, please use that name.
* Resident card, Permanent resident card, Certification of legal status for alien registration, Certification of legal status for the declaration of residence In the Republic of Korea, Declaration of Place of Residence


Writing foreigners’ names in Hangeul
<Hangeul>
SurnameGiven names

Your surname should come first, followed by your given name with no space between them. If you have a name in Hangeul from an official document or certificate issued by an administrative agency, such as a family relations register, please use that name.
If you don't have a name in Hangeul, it should be written in Hangeul according to the original pronunciation of the name, following Korean rules for writing foreign words.



#4
Standards for the Writing
of Foreigners’ Names
Writing foreigners’ names in Roman letters
As a general rule, foreigners' Romanized and Hangeul names should be written together.
Only one shall be used if it is difficult to notate both names due to policy and system..

You can find further details at the Public Participation Legislation Center.


#5
We are committed to minimizing inconvenience experienced by foreigners in daily lives.