Previously, any birth registration application in which the first name, excluding the surname, exceeded five characters was rejected. An exception was allowed only when a child born to a foreign father and a Korean mother was registered with a foreign name listed in the father's civil registry along with the father's last name.

Effective June 20, 2025, the Supreme Court lifted the restriction on birth registration, abolishing the limits on the number of letters in given names for children born to foreign and Korean parents, thereby substantially enhancing the naming rights.

For children born to foreign fathers and Korean mothers, the number of letters in given names will not be restricted if thebirth is registered under the name listed on the father’s civil registry.

Similarly, children born to Korean fathers and foreign mothers are not limited in the number of characters in given names if the birth is registered under the name listed on the mother’s civil registry.

Those who registered births before the revision of related regulations can change the names as listed in the foreign civil registry by submitting a supplementary report in order to use the name without restriction on name length.

Here are some relevant examples:

For a child born to a Korean father and a foreign mother, one way to register the birth under the foreign mother’s surname, for example, “Albert”, is an agreement made at the time of the marriage registration to adopt the mother’s surname and place of origin, among other circumstances.

*See also Family Relationship Registration of Name Characters (Established Rules of Family Relationship Registration No. 638)