Marrying a Spanish or Latin American national?

Registering a marriage between a Korean and a Spanish-speaking-country national requires each side to prove they're currently unmarried — and Korea doesn't issue a document literally called a "certificate of no impediment," while other countries call the equivalent document by several different names.

The Korean side

Korea's 혼인관계증명서 (marriage relation certificate) serves this purpose. Get it apostilled and translated (or translated and then apostilled — order depends on the requesting country's requirements), certified with a 번역확인증명서.

Country-specific notes

• Spain: register at the Spanish Embassy in Korea, or in Spain itself. Per the embassy's own guidance, get the apostille first, then the Spanish translation and 번역확인증명서.
• Colombia: register at the Colombian Embassy in Korea, or in Colombia. Foreign documents must be apostilled or consular-legalized, and translated by a certified translator if not already in Spanish.
• Mexico: no option to register in Korea between a Korean and Mexican national at the embassy — registration must happen in Mexico, and requirements vary by state, so confirm with the specific state authority where you'll register and reside.

The critical rule

Korea cannot apostille or consular-certify a foreign document — your spouse's certificate must get its apostille (or consular legalization) in their home country first, before it comes to Korea for translation and certification.

Who needs this

Binational couples planning to marry, or already married and completing the registration paperwork so the marriage is recognized on both sides. Because requirements differ by country and by which side of the couple is registering, we recommend starting this process well before any visa or residency deadline tied to the marriage.

Typical timeline

The Korean-side document (혼인관계증명서, apostille, translation, and certification) is usually straightforward and can move within a normal document-processing window. The foreign spouse's side depends entirely on that country's own apostille or consular-legalization process, which we can't control or estimate precisely — plan for it to take longer than the Korean side.

Common mistakes

• Assuming Korea can apostille or legalize a foreign spouse's home-country document
• Registering in the wrong order for a country (some require apostille before translation, others the reverse)
• Not confirming state-specific requirements for countries like Mexico, where rules vary by registration location

Pricing

Starts at ₩38,500 (VAT included) per document; total cost depends on how many documents each side needs.