○ Verification certificates for unregistered foreign children to enable linkage to healthcare, childcare, and housing support
○ Early launch in 10 cities and counties: Goyang, Hwaseong, Seongnam, Bucheon, Ansan, Siheung, Anseong, Dongducheon, Gwacheon, and Pyeongtaek

Gyeonggi Province will begin in February the full-scale implementation of its Public Verification System for unregistered foreign children who have remained outside the institutional framework.

Unregistered foreign children are those whose births have not been registered, due to issues such as their parents’ immigration status, and who have consequently remained outside administrative systems. Often described as “children in the shadows,” they have been excluded from healthcare and protection systems and placed in circumstances where public intervention has been difficult, even when they are exposed to risks of abuse or neglect.

The Public Verification System enables public institutions to confirm a child’s birth officially. Although it is separate from formal birth registration and it does not grant nationality or residency status, the system is significant since it administratively recognizes the child’s existence and establishes a minimum yet essential starting point for linking the child to healthcare, protection, and support services.

The initiative will first be implemented in 10 cities and counties—Goyang, Hwaseong, Seongnam, Bucheon, Ansan, Siheung, Anseong, Dongducheon, Gwacheon, and Pyeongtaek—with plans to expand it to all 31 municipalities across the province.

When a parent or a legal guardian applies for public verification at the relevant municipal department or a designated center, officials will review the required documentation and issue a “Gyeonggi Province Verification Certificate for Unregistered Foreign Children.” The certificate will include the child’s photograph and personal information such as name and date of birth. Based on this certificate, children will be able to access public services including applications for childcare subsidies for unregistered foreign children. They will also be connected to support from private organizations such as Save the Children, UNICEF, ChildFund Korea, and Catholic Archdiocese of Seoul for assistance with healthcare, childcare, and improvements to housing environments.

The Province adopted a public-private partnership approach to address concerns regarding potential fiscal burdens associated with the introduction of the system. Instead of reallocating existing welfare budgets or introducing new budget expenditures, the Province verifies the child’s identity through its administrative authority. At the same time, substantive support—such as medical expense assistance or housing improvements—is provided through partnerships with private organizations.

Through this approach, the existing welfare system for Korean nationals remains unchanged, while children who had been left outside the system are brought within the scope of public oversight and management. In the long term, the provincial government expects the system to help eliminate human rights blind spots and strengthen community safety nets by proactively preventing social risks such as child neglect, abandonment, and exposure to crime.

According to Kim Seong-hwan, Director of the Gyeonggi Province’s Immigrant Society Support Division, the Public Verification System marks the first case among metropolitan governments in Korea of putting into practice the “right to protection immediately upon birth” as stipulated in the Constitution of the Republic of Korea and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. “Through close cooperation with the private sector, we will enhance the effectiveness of this policy and foster a community where both Korean nationals and foreign residents can live safely together,” he added.