Short answer. Yes, within 15 days, and it is not a formality. Article 36(1) of the Immigration Control Act requires a registered foreign national who changes their place of stay to report the move within 15 days of arriving, either to the head of the local si, gun, gu, eup, myeon or dong office, or to the head of the local immigration office with jurisdiction. Breaching the stay provisions is among the grounds that can support deportation under Article 46(1), so this is a small obligation attached to a large consequence.
What Korean law says
Article 36(1): where a foreign national who has registered under Article 31 changes their place of stay, they must file a report of the move within 15 days of the day they moved in, to the head of the si, gun, gu, eup, myeon or dong for the new place of stay, or to the head of the local immigration office with jurisdiction over it.
Article 36(2): the alien registration card must be submitted when reporting, and the office records the change on the card and returns it.
Article 36(3) and (4): the immigration office notifies the new local office without delay, and the new local office notifies the previous one.
Article 46(1) lists the grounds on which deportation may be ordered. Subparagraph 8 covers a person who has breached Articles 17, 18, 20, 23, 24 or 25, the provisions governing stay, employment and status.
Immigration Control Act, Articles 31, 36 and 46. Act No. 20992, in force from 23 January 2026.
What usually happens in practice
The report is quick and can usually be done at the local community office rather than at immigration, which is why it is so often left undone: it feels administrative rather than legal. The problem surfaces later, when correspondence goes to an address you left. Summonses, notices and orders are sent to the registered address, and a deadline that runs from receipt does not pause because the letter went somewhere else.
The 15 days run from moving in, not from signing a lease or from the date you intended to move.
If you have missed the deadline, reporting late is still better than not reporting. The situation the authorities treat most seriously is a person who cannot be located, not a person who was two weeks late.
What you should do next
- Report within 15 days of moving in, and take your alien registration card with you.
- Check the address on the card afterwards. The change is recorded on it.
- If you have a case running with police, prosecutors or a court, tell them your new address separately. The immigration report does not do that for you.
- If you are already late, report now rather than waiting.
Related
Departure order or deportation in Korea?
What is a summary order fine in Korea and can I contest it?
Do I have to attend a police summons in Korea?
Immigration and residence status answers
All Korean law answers
Full guide: Deportation and re-entry in Korea
Tell us about your case
Send the facts and the stage your case is at. A Korean attorney reviews it and replies. No need to call first.
Written and reviewed by Soobin You, Attorney at YUSU Lawfirm. Former prosecutor. Last legal review: 12 September 2026.