South Korea expands mobile ID to overseas residents

South Korea is making its mobile identification cards available to its nationals living overseas.

The mobile ID card service will be made available to Koreans residing outside of the country to solve their difficulties in accessing public services from abroad. Currently, most online platforms for administrative services require a Korean phone number for verification meaning that some Koreans continue to pay monthly phone bills to maintain their phone numbers active in the country.

To receive a mobile ID card, Korean nationals residing overseas will have to apply through diplomatic offices, the Korean Ministry of Interior and Safety announced this week, according to the Korea Herald

The Korean government introduced its mobile ID in 2022, with mobile driver’s licenses (mDL) rolling out that same year. The following year saw the issuing of mobile veterans registration cards while mobile ID cards for foreign residents in Korea will roll out in the first half of 2025.

In March, Samsung Wallet became the first privately-run mobile app to introduce the government’s mobile ID cards, including mobile driver’s licenses and veteran cards. The move allowed Koreans to skip downloading the government mobile ID app: Since 2022, the Ministry of Interior has issued only 2.2 million digital identification cards, a modest number for a country of 51.5 million people. Samsung Wallet has up to 17 million users in South Korea.

How South Korea handles standards

The United States, China and Europe have become important players in standards and standardization. But they are not the only ones. A host of other countries are joining them, including South Korea.

Washington-based think tank Carnegie Endowment for International Peace published an analysis in February of Korea’s distinctive digital policy and its experience in standard setting, particularly in comparison with Asian countries such as Malaysia and Japan.

Over the past 30 years, domestic companies such as Samsung have grown to global relevance and with that, they are giving more attention to international standard bodies. In the past, Korea has often used national standards to protect home markets and domestic companies but recently, Korean firms have attempted to be among the first to adopt international standards.

Carnegie has previously published an analysis of Korea’s online identity authentication initiatives, covering the country’s path from government initiatives such as I-PIN to including private companies in authentication to expand reach.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  digital ID  |  government services  |  identity management  |  South Korea