On this page, you will find:
To find organisations working for LGBTQI+ rights, visit our South Korea LGBTQI+ Resources page.
For South Korea country of origin information (COI) experts, reports, commentaries, and relevant documents visit our South Korea COI page.
Refugee protection
Click here to see the numbers and origins of refugees hosted by South Korea.
The following sections contain information on the most important international treaties and agreements of which South Korea is signatory, as well as national legislation relevant to the protection of refugees.
The Republic of Korea acceded to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol in 1992. The Republic of Korea acceded to the 1954 Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons in 1962; however, it is not party to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.
In 2013, The Refugee Act, its Presidential Decree and Enforcement Regulation came into force. The Refugee Act is the first stand-alone comprehensive refugee law in the Republic of Korea and is monitored with the UNHCR, foreseeing the possibility of granting humanitarian status to those who do not meet the refugee definition but are in need of protection.
Legal aid organisations
Website
Address: #505,163 Anguk-dong, Jongro-gu, Seoul, Korea 110-240
Tel: +82 23 47 80 529
Fax: +82 23 47 80 527
Email: apil@apil.or.kr
APIL is a non-profit public interest law firm working with and for underrepresented groups including refugees, immigration detainees, and victims of human trafficking in the Republic of Korea. It provides legal and pro-bono referral services with an effort to ensure that asylum seekers are properly represented. APIL also provides assistance and training to refugee lawyers to increase efficiency and expertise in providing legal services.
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Address: 647-9, Yeoksam-dong Gangnam-gu Seoul 135-980 Korea Knowledge Center Building 13th Floor
Tel: +82 02 34 04 75 90
Fax: +82 02 34 04 73 07
Email: bkl@bkl.or.kr
The Dongcheon Foundation offers free legal consultations, defense and legal aid activities and direct support for disadvantaged social groups including refugees. Dongcheon Foundation is also a member of the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network.
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Address: (03058) 29-6, Changdeokgung-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea
Tel: 02-3675-7740
Fax:02-3675-7742
Email: gonggam@gmail.com
GongGam supports those seeking asylum in their quest for recognition as Convention refugees. In 2007, they successfully obtained recognition of refugee status of a Chinese asylum seeker for the first time when the Seoul Administrative Court accepted his claim of a well-founded fear of persecution should he be forcibly returned to his home country as a result of his exposure of human rights violations by government officials. For further details of their work with refugees and migrants, visit the Areas of Practice page. Member of the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network (APRRN) and Southern Refugee Legal Aid Network (SRLAN).
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Address: 100-042 21-5, Namsan-dong 2Ga, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Tel: +82 28 71 53 82
Fax: +82 28 88 16 76
Email: pnan@pnan.org
Provides legal assistance to refugees including self-representation advice, drafting testimonies and legal submission, interview preparation, and referral to other NGOs. Refuge Pnan also provides health services, psycho-social services, education, livelihood assistance, language classes and lessons in martial arts.
Organisations providing other support to refugees
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Address: Gonghwa Building 10F, 7-2 Chungjeong-ro 2-ga, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Tel: +82 27 23 16 72
Email: nkhr@naver.com
NKHR is a Seoul-based NGO that advocates for the human rights of the people of North Korea. NKHR campaigns domestically and internationally for improved human rights and provides assistance to North Korean refugees and those who have re-settled in South Korea. NKHR’s work for North Korean refugees includes advocating for better treatment of North Korean refugees in third countries, particularly China, where nearly all North Koreans refugees must pass through. NKHR also provides direct assistance to North Korean refugees who are in hiding in China.
Website
Address: KPO Box 677, Seoul, 110-110, Republic of Korea.
Email: tapkorea@gmail.com
HHK provides food, medicine, and clothing to the most vulnerable sectors of the North Korean society, especially orphans in impoverished areas, the handicapped, and the elderly. HHK also provides help in China to children who’ve been separated from or abandoned by North Korean escapee mothers who’ve fallen victim to Chinese human traffickers, such assistance can include foster care to monthly stipends.
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Address: 4th Floor Yoonggi Bldg., 210 Apkujung St. Gangnam-gu, Seoul 135-894, Korea
Tel: +82 27 23 16 73
Fax: +82 25 11 02 73
Email: humanasia@humanasia.org
Human Asia provides support through a series of advocacy campaigns research papers, international conferences, and reports on human rights issues relating to refugee and migrant rights. Human Asia will also provide referrals to asylum seekers and refugees in search of local legal aid NGOs equipped to handle legal representation and casework.
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Address: 4th Floor, Il-deung Building, 70-3 Galwol-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, Korea 140-806
Tel: +82 (0)2 71 20 620
Fax: +82 (0)5 05 50 30 620
Email: refucenter@gmail.com
NANCEN provides emergency medical assistance, psychological consultation and treatment, nursery care for children, educational support and temporary shelter for refugees. Concerning refugee status determination (RSD), NANCEN offers free consultation for refugee applicants. It provides refugees with basic guidelines concerning the RSD process, pre-interviews them, assists them with writing their statements, and accompanies them to the Refugee Office where decisions are made. NANCEN also monitors the detention facilities for foreigners on a monthly basis; conducts a citizen education programme on refugees; publishes refugee-related books and reports; and lobbies for financial support for improved refugee policy.
South Korea LGBTQI+ Resources
Find organisations working for refugee LGBTQI+ rights in South Korea.
South Korea COI
Find South Korea Country of Origin information (COI) experts, reports, commentaries, and relevant documents.
We are always looking to expand the resources on our platform. If you know about relevant resources, or you are aware of organisations and/or individuals to include in our directories, please get in touch.
Last updated May 2023