"You Can Give Up Being Korean If You Avoid the Military"... Nearly 20,000 Renounced Citizenship in 5 Years

Over 18,000 Military Service-Eligible South Koreans Renounced Citizenship in Past 5 Years
66% Acquired U.S. Citizenship, Followed by Canada, Japan, and Australia

It has been revealed that over the past five years, approximately 20,000 South Korean nationals subject to mandatory military service have renounced their citizenship.

Soldiers enlisting at the Army Training Center and their families seeing them off. Unrelated to the article. Photo by Yonhap News.

According to data submitted by the Military Manpower Administration to Assemblyman Hwang Hee, a member of the National Assembly’s Defense Committee, a total of 18,434 individuals subject to military service renounced their South Korean citizenship between 2021 and August of this year.

The most common reason was acquiring a foreign nationality due to studying abroad or long-term overseas residence, with 12,153 individuals (65.9%) giving up their South Korean citizenship for this reason. Meanwhile, 6,281 people (34.1%) who had dual citizenship from birth relinquished their South Korean nationality around the age of 18.

The foreign nationality most frequently chosen by those who renounced their South Korean citizenship was the United States, with 12,231 individuals (66.4%) acquiring U.S. citizenship. This was followed by Canada with 2,282 people (12.4%), Japan with 1,589 (8.6%), Australia with 821 (4.5%), and New Zealand with 516 (2.8%).

In contrast, during the same period, only 2,813 overseas emigrants with foreign permanent residency applied for voluntary enlistment. By nationality, the numbers were as follows: United States (511), China (476), Vietnam (260), Japan (220), Canada (155), and Indonesia (154).

Assemblyman Hwang stated, "It is urgent to establish strict standards for those who renounce their citizenship, as this could be abused as a means to evade military service," adding, "Measures should be put in place to encourage dual nationals to fulfill their military duty, and more support should be given to those subject to conscription."