An identity document is important to get as soon as you are eligible (from 16 years of age) as it proves your identity. The green bar-coded identity book (ID book) is also a legal form of identity when dealing with public and private institutions. There are many occasions when you will be requested to provide a copy of your ID book – for example for access to housing, education and healthcare services; to apply for a driver’s license or a job; when entering into business agreements and even when registering for the Unemployment Insurance Fund. You will also need an identity book to apply for a passport, and visas to work, study or visit friends and family overseas. You will also need your identity book to register to vote in the general and municipal elections.

Identity documents are issued to South African citizens or permanent residence permit holders who are 16 years or older. People (including spouses and children) who are working for the South African government or one of its statutory bodies outside of the Republic of South Africa also qualify to receive South African ID books.

You can apply for your ID book at any office of the Department of Home Affairs or any South African mission or consulate overseas. All applications are sent to the Department’s head office in Pretoria. There, your fingerprints will be matched with those already on record or entered into the National Population Register (NPR). Your application will then be processed and once issued, your ID book will be forwarded to the office where you made your application for you to collect.

If you are married and want to assume the surname of your spouse. You must submit a certified copy of your marriage certificate, a completed application form(s) and a pay the required fee. If you are a woman and want to apply for a new ID in the name of any of your previous surnames, then documentary proof showing you are entitled to use that surname must be provided (i.e. a birth certificate, a marriage certificate, etc.) along with the completed forms. You will also be required to pay a fee for the re-issue. If your ID book has been lost, stolen or damaged, you can apply for a replacement.

[NOTICE] The Department of Home Affairs has issued a book-type identity document for the applications submitted to the Department via the South African Embassy in Seoul. If you need a Smart ID Card, please submit your application to one of the designated offices in the Republic of when you visit or return home: http://www.dha.gov.za/index.php/id-smart-card/offices-ready

Appointment bookings are required for all the visitors to the South African Embassy in Seoul. Walk-in services are NOT available.

Civic applications must be submitted in person, by each applicant, to the South African Embassy in Seoul. Firstly, please print out the check-list (DOWNLOAD) and prepare all the requirements accordingly. Applicants are requested to submit the complete application WITH this check-list marked and completed by hand. It is also suggested to read and study the specimen forms (DHA-9 & BI-529) before you visit the Embassy. You will be given these forms in ORIGINAL that day. All the forms must be completed in black ink and block letters at the Embassy.

Incomplete applications will NOT be accepted by our officials. Applicants are responsible for preparing all the required information and documentation as advised on the check-list. Should you have any queries regarding your application or require further assistance and advice on your document(s), please contact us before you lodge the application with us: consular.seoul@dirco.gov.za

If your application is ready to be submitted to the Embassy, please send an e-mail (consular.seoul@dirco.gov.za) for appointment bookings. Write your full names, contact number, and type of your application(s). We will send you a booking confirmation by e-mail. Please check the date & time of your appointment(s) in our e-mail message. For your information, the appointment time will be scheduled during consular hours: 9am-12pm, from Monday to Friday.

NP: Please note that only those who have an appointment confirmed by e-mail are admitted to the chancery building. If you are late for more than 15 minutes of your appointment time, it will be automatically cancelled. If you cannot attend your appointment, please cancel it in time, so that it can be reallocated to someone else. If you do not comply with the requirements, you will not be assisted and therefore you will have to book a new appointment.

The average processing time is 6 months, up to 12 months in some cases. Applicants are requested to bear in mind that all the applications are sent to the Department of Home Affairs in Pretoria for processing. The South African Embassy in Seoul is NOT in the position to expedite the process or follow up on the application(s). Applicants are requested NOT to contact the Embassy unnecessarily for progress on their application. If it takes longer than the estimated timeframe, each applicant may directly contact the Department of Home Affairs’ Contact Centre about his/her application status: http://www.dha.gov.za/index.php/ask-us

Newly issued ID books are dispatched from the Department of Home Affairs to our head office in Pretoria, Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO), and then, from DIRCO to the South African Embassy in Seoul by a diplomatic bag. Upon receipt of the identity documents, we notify each applicant by e-mail. Please check the collection date & time in our e-mail message. If you have applied for two or more documents, you will receive separate messages for each document. A civic application is processed individually, and one can take longer than the other to be approved or issued.