Nationwide resident registration survey to begin Monday, with online participation open through Sept. 7

The government will conduct the 2026 resident registration survey targeting all citizens from Monday through Dec. 14 to improve the accuracy of resident registration statistics.

The Ministry of Interior and Safety said Wednesday the survey — which checks whether a person's registered address matches their actual place of residence — will proceed in two phases: a non-contact online survey and an in-person visit survey.

The online phase runs from 9 a.m. Monday through midnight Sept. 7, using the Government24 mobile app.

Participants log into the Government24 app from their registered address and answer a set of survey questions; the app uses GPS location data to verify actual residence.

One household member may respond on behalf of the entire household at the same address. The online survey is available only through the mobile app and cannot be completed on a PC.

To boost participation this year, the ministry extended the online survey period beyond previous years and will operate a dedicated page within the Government24 app.

The ministry also improved the system by integrating the private navigation service TMAP to display participants' current locations more accurately.

Participants must update the Government24 app to its latest version and grant the smartphone location access permission before taking part.

Some local governments plan to use mobile electronic notification services to alert household heads who have not yet participated, sending reminders via KakaoTalk and other platforms.

From Sept. 8 through Nov. 9, neighborhood leaders and township and district civil servants will conduct in-person visits to verify residency directly.

The in-person phase covers households that did not participate in the online survey as well as those designated for priority review. Households that completed the online survey are still subject to an in-person visit if they fall under the priority review category.

Priority review targets include households with residents aged 100 or older, those with individuals whose whereabouts have been unknown for five or more years, suspected deceased persons, high-risk welfare-crisis households, and households with children who have had prolonged unexcused absences from school or school-age children who have never enrolled.

Survey results for high-risk households among those identified as welfare-crisis cases will be shared with the Ministry of Health and Welfare to help address welfare blind spots and support vulnerable households.

If an in-person visit fails to confirm actual residency or reveals discrepancies with registered information, local government civil servants will conduct additional investigations.

Where corrections to resident registration records are deemed necessary, official notification and public announcement procedures will be followed, with ex officio corrections carried out from Nov. 10 through Dec. 7.

Kim Min-jae, vice minister of interior and safety, said the resident registration survey "is an essential undertaking to maintain accurate resident registration statistics, which form the foundation for policy development by the national and local governments." He urged the public to "actively participate and cooperate so that the 2026 resident registration survey, which begins on Monday, can proceed smoothly."