Getting Korean documents: routes, what to bring, what trips people up

You get a document online, at a kiosk, or at a counter. Some documents offer all three; some offer only one. Online is usually cheapest and the counter dearest, but a property register extract carries a fee online too.

Three things decide the route: how you prove who you are, whether you need paper, and whether the receiving office insists on an original. If they want a stamped original, a copy you printed at home may not pass, so ask before you go.

The portal differs by document: the government portal, the internet registry office, the tax service. What they share is a way to prove your identity. Simple authentication through a carrier, bank or card now works in most places instead of a joint certificate.

You receive it one of two ways: printed from your screen, or as an electronic certificate in a document wallet. If you have no printer, the wallet route works, but check that the receiving office accepts electronic documents first.

Kiosks sit in community centres, subway stations and large hospitals. They are cheaper than a counter and the queue is shorter, and they check identity by fingerprint or ID card. Some machines will not serve you if you never registered a fingerprint.

Each machine issues a different set of documents. Two machines in the same building can differ by install year, so check the agency notice before you travel. Opening hours vary too, and many are not open around the clock.

A counter costs the most and fails the least. If you go in person, one photo ID covers most documents. It has to be government issued and carry your photo: a resident card, a driving licence, a passport.

Some documents come out of any office in the country; others are tied to a jurisdiction. Registers and cadastral records are usually tied, so read the Issued by column on the document page before you set off.

The rules differ per document. For some, being family is enough. For others you need a proxy form and the other person's ID. A few are issued to the person only.

Each agency sets its own proxy form and its own list of who counts. So this site links out instead of summarising. A wrong summary here costs you a wasted trip.

• The full extract and the abstract are different documents. The full one lists everyone in the household; the abstract lists your address history. Ask which one they want.
• You choose whether the ID number is masked. Unless the receiving office says it needs the full number, leave it masked.
• Many offices set an expiry. It is not the document that expires; they ask for one issued within the last three months.
• A printed electronic certificate is refused in some places. Ask first.
• Fee waivers depend on local ordinance and on who you are. The figures here are the standard fee before any waiver.