Parents can now obtain children's immigration records online through Government24

The Ministry of Interior and Safety announced Wednesday that starting Thursday it will launch an online service on Government24 allowing parents to obtain immigration certificates for their minor children without visiting a government office in person.

Previously, parents had to visit a community center or immigration office in person to obtain such certificates for their minor children.

Those who stand to benefit most from the new service are parents living abroad.

Under the old system, families with children studying overseas — or those residing abroad altogether — had to either ask a relative in Korea to obtain the certificate or return to the country themselves whenever a child's immigration record was needed for submission to a domestic institution.

The ministry also expects the service to ease the burden on dual-income households, which previously had to carve out time to visit a community center.

The service operates on a parental-authority verification system that draws on public MyData infrastructure.

When a parent submits an application along with a family relations certificate issued from the child's perspective, the administrative network automatically cross-checks the attached document against public MyData to confirm parental authority before issuing the certificate.

The ministry has been running a pilot program for online parental proxy issuance of documents for minor children since June 12, covering disability certificates and passport reissuance applications.

Over roughly seven weeks through Sunday, Aug. 2, the pilot processed a total of 6,821 cases — including 2,654 disability certificates and 4,167 passport reissuance applications.

The ministry said it plans to use the immigration certificate service as a starting point to gradually expand the range of documents available through online parental proxy issuance, identifying additional civil service categories in high demand for minors.