Korea's Entry Exit Record Certificate: How to Get It…

Your visa checklist has one more line.

It asks for proof of every time you entered and left Korea. Not passport stamps. An official record. You’ve already gathered the bank statement, the lease and the photos. Then this single line stops you, often a few days before a deadline.

The document is the chulipguk-e gwanhan sasil jeungmyeong (출입국에 관한 사실증명). In English it’s usually called the entry exit record certificate, or the Certificate of Entry and Exit. It lists the dates Korean immigration logged you leaving and arriving. That’s it. One page, sometimes two.

Most foreign residents can get it in minutes on Government24. Some pick the wrong settings and have to start over. You’ll need the number on your ARC (Alien Registration Card) for almost everything below, so sort that out first if you haven’t.

So why does a simple list of dates matter so much?

Why a list of travel dates becomes a required document

The entry exit record certificate is an official record of every departure and arrival logged by the Korea Immigration Service. Agencies ask for it because passport stamps are unreliable. Registered residents often use automated gates that never stamp anything. The certificate fills that gap. It serves as Korea travel history proof for visa files, tax checks and embassy applications.

The law behind it

The certificate isn’t a favor. It’s set out in law. Article 88 of the Immigration Act lets several kinds of offices issue it, not only immigration. You can read the full statute on MOLEG, the Ministry of Government Legislation’s law portal.

“The head of a regional immigration office, the head of a city, county or district, the head of an eup, myeon or dong, or the head of an overseas mission may issue a certificate of facts concerning entry and departure to nationals and foreigners who have departed or entered under this Act.” (Immigration Act, Article 88(1), unofficial English translation)

Keep that list in mind. It’s the reason you can print this document at a neighborhood office, or even at a Korean embassy abroad.

Stamps don’t tell the full story

Here’s the catch. Korea’s Smart Entry Service (SES) lets eligible travelers clear immigration at automated gates. Many registered foreign residents use them. No officer. No stamp. After a couple of years of gate crossings, your passport may show almost nothing.

The certificate shows what the system recorded. That’s why officers and embassies trust it more than your passport pages.

Who asks for it

You’ll see this document requested in a handful of situations:

• Korean visa files. When an application on HiKorea depends on how long you’ve stayed, officers may ask for it. Think F-5 permanent residency, where stay length and KIIP completion both count, or F-2 residency. It also comes up when an extension officer questions a long absence. Korea visa extension
• Foreign embassy visas. Some embassies in Seoul ask residents to show recent travel history. This is where the certificate is most often required for visa application files outside Korea’s own system.
• Tax residency. The National Tax Service treats people who reside in Korea for 183 days or more as tax residents. Your entry and exit dates prove that count.
• Health insurance disputes. If you were billed for months spent abroad, the National Health Insurance Service may ask for proof of departure.
• Employers and schools. E-7 sponsors and universities hosting D-2 students sometimes request it after a long absence.

Whatever the reason, the fastest route is online. But only if your login works.

How to get it online in about five minutes

Log in to Government24 at gov.kr with your foreign registration number and a login method in your own name. Search for 출입국에 관한 사실증명, click Issue, choose foreigner as the subject, set the date range, and select online issuance. Government24 lists online issuance as free. You then print it or save it from your application history.

What you need before you start

• Your foreign registration number (the 13 digits on your ARC; newer cards say Residence Card)
• A login method: a joint certificate (gongdong injeungseo) or a simple authentication app such as PASS, Kakao or Naver
• A phone registered in your own name, since most simple authentication apps check it
• A PC with a printer, or the Government24 mobile app

No Korean phone in your name? That’s the wall many people hit here. Skip to the in-person section below. A counter visit avoids the login entirely.

Step by step

1. Go to Government24. The English site offers limited services, so use the Korean site. Browser translation helps, but keep the Korean button names below handy.
2. Type 출입국에 관한 사실증명 into the search bar. Choose the result with that exact name.
3. Click 발급하기 (Issue). Log in with your certificate or simple authentication app.
4. If the form asks for the subject type, choose 외국인 (foreigner). Confirm your registration number.
5. Set the period (기간). More on this in the next section, because it’s where people slip.
6. Under receiving method, choose 온라인발급(본인출력) (online issuance, print yourself).
7. Click 민원신청하기 (submit). Then open your application history and click 문서출력 (print document).

On a computer, Government24 asks you to install a print-security program before the document opens. That’s normal. On the Government24 app, you can usually view the certificate and send it to the electronic document wallet (jeonja munseo jigap) instead of printing.

Does the login step keep failing? A separate guide covers digital certificates and simple authentication for foreigners.

Step 5 looks harmless. It isn’t.

The settings that decide whether your certificate gets accepted

Before issuing, Government24 asks for a date range and may ask whether to show your full registration number. Choose the exact period the receiving agency requested. If no period was given, request your full record. Show the full number only when the agency needs it. A mismatched range is an easy reason for an officer to send it back.

The date range

Picture this. An embassy asks for your travel history from the last five years. You print the last 12 months because it seemed like enough. The file comes back two weeks later.

Read the request literally. Common patterns look like this:

• “All records”: choose the full period.
• “Last X years”: set the start date exactly X years before today.
• “Since your first entry”: set the start date before your first arrival in Korea.

When in doubt, wider is safer. A longer record rarely causes trouble. A short one often does.

Your registration number

Your registration number appears on the certificate. Government24 may let you hide the back digits. Hiding them protects you if the paper passes through many hands.

But some Korean agencies need the full number to match your file. Ask first. If you can’t ask, show the full number for Korean government use. Hide it for private uses, like a landlord or a private company.

Old passports and missing trips

Trips made on an older passport, or before you registered, sometimes need a manual check. If a trip you know you took is missing, call the 1345 Immigration Contact Center. It offers help in many languages, including English, Chinese and Vietnamese. If you then visit an office, bring both passports.

No working login at all? You still have options. One of them is probably down the street.

What it costs, and where to print it in person

Government24 lists online issuance as free. In person, you can request the certificate at a regional immigration office, a city or district office, or a local community service center. Overseas, a Korean embassy or consulate can issue it. Bring your ARC or passport. Counter fees, if any, appear on the Government24 service page, so check before you go.

The issuance fee, plainly

Most people search for the issuance fee expecting a catch. Online, there isn’t one. Government24 shows no charge for self-printed online issuance.

For counter issuance, don’t rely on a figure from an old blog post. Open the service page on Government24 and check the fee field. Bring a card just in case. The bigger cost is usually time, not money.

Where to print: immigration office or community center?

Wondering where to print it at an immigration office? Check office locations on the Korea Immigration Service site first. Many immigration offices run on visit reservations booked through HiKorea. For a simple certificate, a community service center is usually the faster choice.

What about the unmanned civil service kiosks (mu-in minwon balgeupgi) in subway stations? They verify identity with Korean resident fingerprint data. Most foreign residents can’t use them for this document.

Sending someone else

Can’t take time off work? A proxy can usually request it at a counter. They typically need a power of attorney (wiimjang) signed by you, their own ID, and a copy of your ARC or passport. Requirements differ by office. Your proxy should call ahead.

You’ve got the paper. Now make sure it survives the trip to the desk.

When a valid certificate still gets sent back

A genuine certificate can still fail. Many receiving agencies want one issued recently, often within the past one to three months. Embassies abroad may require a translation or an apostille. Some offices verify the document number on Government24. Before printing, ask the agency three things: which period, how recent, and what format. Those answers prevent most rejections.

Freshness

The certificate carries no printed expiry date. The receiving agency sets its own rule. A visa officer looking at a paper from six months ago sees six months of missing data.

Print it as close to submission as you can. Online issuance is free. There’s no reason to reuse an old copy.

Language and apostille

The standard printout is in Korean. If you’re using it abroad or at a foreign embassy, check two things. First, do they accept Korean, or need a certified translation? Second, do they need an apostille?

Korea is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs handles apostille requests for Korean public documents.

Proving it’s real

Every Government24 printout carries a document verification number. Agencies can check it through Government24’s document authenticity service. That’s why a clean printout beats a phone screenshot. A screenshot can’t be checked this way.

Collecting this for permanent residency? The stay rules there have their own traps, and the certificate is only one piece. F-5 permanent residency requirements

What to do this week if your deadline is close

Ask the receiving agency which period and format it needs. Then try Government24 online first, since it’s free and fast. If your login fails, go to the nearest community service center with your ARC. If trips are missing, contact 1345 or visit an immigration office. Submit the newest printout you can, never a copy from an earlier application.

One small habit saves a second trip. Save the PDF, or keep two printed copies. Visa files have a way of asking twice.

If your status is D-2, D-10, E-7, F-2, F-4, F-5 or F-6, the steps are the same. Only the receiving agency’s rules change. So the first call, not the first click, is the real start.