U.S. EMBASSY E-2 Visa INFORMATION

 

The government of the Republic of Korea changed its immigration procedures effective December 15, 2007, to require that criminal records checks and a health certificate be submitted with E-2 visa applications or extensions.  The U.S. Embassy in South Korea does not provide a records check or fingerprinting service, nor can the Embassy authenticate records checks or health certificates.  Korean Immigration informed the Embassy on July 17, 2008, that they will no longer accept criminal records checks provided by an on-line service as some states and private companies are able to do.  Korean Immigration will only accept an FBI criminal records check or a local police letter from your city or state of residence.

 

If you have further questions, we suggest that you contact the Korean Immigration Service, Border Control Division, at 500-9116, 500-9117, or 500-9118, or consult their website: http://seoul.immigration.go.kr/HP/IMM80/index.do.

 

Below you will find the procedure that U.S. citizens must undertake to secure a properly authenticated criminal record check. 

 

I.  Criminal Records Check Information:

U.S. citizens may be asked to present a "certificate of good conduct" or "lack of a criminal record" for a variety of reasons for use abroad including adoption, school attendance, employment, etc.  U.S. law enforcement authorities may not be familiar with such a procedure since it is not commonly requested in the U.S.  There are a variety of options available to U.S. citizens seeking to obtain proof of their lack of a criminal record. 

Federal Records Check:  The Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) centralizes criminal justice information and provides accurate and timely information and services to local, state, federal, and international law enforcement agencies, the private sector, academia, and other government agencies.  The subject of an identification record may obtain a copy thereof by submitting a written request to the CJIS.  The request must be accompanied by satisfactory proof of identity (consisting of name, date and place of birth, and a set of roll-inked fingerprint impressions) and a certified check or money order for the $18 processing fee.  It will take 16-18 weeks for the FBI to process the request.  The FBI will not provide copies of arrest records to individuals other than the subject of the record. Requests should be directed to FBI CJIS Division, Attn: SCU, Mod. D-2, 1000 Custer Hollow Rd., Clarksburg, West Virginia 26306.  If there is no criminal record, a report reflecting this fact is provided. 

Local Police Check:  U.S. citizens should go to their local police department where they reside or last resided in the U.S., request that the police conduct a criminal records search and provide them with a document reflecting that there is no history of a criminal record.  Local police departments may require a personal appearance in order to conduct the search.  The local police department can phrase this in whatever way it deems appropriate.  The document should then be authenticated for use abroad following the State Department’s guidance on authentication or legalization of documents.  The entire process will vary in the amount of time and money required depending on which state it is requested from.  We encourage applicants for E-2 visas in South Korea to contact their state government directly in order to obtain this information. 

II.  AUTHENTICATION PROCEDURES:

The U.S. and South Korea are parties to the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents.  The Convention abolishes the requirement of diplomatic and consular legalization for public documents originating in one Convention country and intended for use in another.  For the purposes of the Convention, public documents include:  (a) documents emanating from a court, (b) documents issued by an administrative authority (such as civil records), and (c) documents executed before a notary.  Such documents issued in a Convention country that have been certified by a Convention certificate called an "apostille" are entitled to recognition in any other Convention country without any further authentication.  See TIAS 10072; U.N.T.S. 189; 28 U.S.C.A., Fed. R. Civ. P. 44, pp. 323-327 (1992 & West Supp. 1993); Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory, Law Digest Volume, Selected International Conventions; 20 Int'l. Leg. Mat. 1405-1414 (November 1981). 

Federal Records Check:  Documents issued under the seal of a federal agency can be authenticated by the U.S. Department of State Authentications Office.  The office is located at 518 23rd St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20520, tel: (202) 647-5002.  There is a fee of $7.00 for each authentication payable in the form of a check drawn on a U.S. bank or money order made payable to the Department of State.  For additional information, call the Federal Information Center: 1-800-688-9889, and choose option 6 after you press 1 for touch tone phones.  Walk-in service is available from the Authentications Office from 7:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., Monday-Friday, except holidays.  Walk-in service is limited to 15 documents per person per day (documents can be multiple pages).  Processing time for authentication requests sent by mail is 5 working days or less. 

Local Police Check:  A local police check must be authenticated in the state where it was issued.  The list below indicates where a U.S. citizen must submit a document for authentication.  See also 28 U.S.C.A., Fed. R. Civ. P. 44, pp. 328-31 (1992 & West Supp. 1993). 

Alabama
Office of the Secretary of State
Authentication Section
State Capitol, Room E-204
600 Dexter Ave.
Montgomery, AL 36104
334-242-7210
http://www.sos.alabama.gov/AdminServices/Authentications.aspx
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State

Alaska
Notary Administrator
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
P.O. Box 110015
Juneau, AK 99811- 0015
907-465-3509
http://ltgov.state.ak.us/notary/authentications.php
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Lieutenant Governor; Attorney General; Clerk of the Supreme Court

Arizona
Office of the Secretary of State
Business Services Division, Notary Section
1700 W. Washington, 7th Floor
Phoenix, AZ 85007-2888
602 542-4086/ 602 542-4758
http://www.azsos.gov/business_services/notary/
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State.

Arkansas
Office of Secretary of State
Corporations Division
State Capitol
Little Rock, AR 72201-1094
501-682-3409
http://www.sosweb.state.ar.us/corp_ucc_notary.html
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Chief Deputy Secretary of State.

California
Office of the Secretary of State
Business Programs Division
Notary Public Section
P.O. Box 942877
Sacramento, CA 94277-0001
916-653-3595
http://www.ss.ca.gov/business/notary/notary.htm
Fee: $20.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; any Assistant Secretary of State; any Deputy Secretary of State.

Colorado
Office of Secretary of State
1560 Broadway, Suite 200
Denver, CO 80202
303-894-2680
http://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/notary/notary_home.htm
Fee: By Mail: $2.00 While You Wait: $17.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

Connecticut
Office of the Secretary of State
Authentication Unit
30 Trinity St.
Hartford, CT 06106
860-509-6135
http://www.ct.gov/sots/cwp/view.asp?a=3177&q=392130&SOTSNav_GID=1844
Fee: $20.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

Delaware
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Division
401 Federal St., Suite 3
Dover, DE 19901
302- 302/739-4111
http://sos.delaware.gov/nphome.shtml
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Acting Secretary of State.

District of Columbia
Office of the Secretary, D.C.
Notary Commissions & Authentications Section
441 4th St. N.W. (One Judiciary Square)
Washington, D.C.
202-727-3117
http://os.dc.gov/os/cwp/view,a,1207,q,522462,osNav,|31374|.asp
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Executive Secretary; Assistant Executive Secretary; Mayor''s Special Assistant and Assistant to the Executive Secretary; Secretary of the District of Columbia.

Florida
Department of State
Office of International Affairs
Notary Certification/Apostille Section
The Capitol Building
Suite 1902
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0250
804-488-7521
http://notaries.dos.state.fl.us/notproc7.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State

Georgia
Georgia Superior Court Clerks'' Cooperative Authority
Notary Division
1875 Century Boulevard, Suite 100
Atlanta, GA 30345
404-327-6023
http://www.gsccca.org/Projects/aboutnp.asp

or

Office of Secretary of State
Administrative Procedures Unit
2 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive
Suite 820 - West Tower
Atlanta, Georgia 30334
404-656-2885
http://www.sos.state.ga.us/administration/notary.htm
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Georgia Superior Court Clerks'' Cooperative Authority.

Hawaii
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
State Capitol, 5 th Floor,
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
808-586-0255
http://hawaii.gov/ltgov/office/apostilles
Fee: $1.00
Designated Authority: Lieutenant Governor of the State of Hawaii.

Idaho
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Department
Box 83720
Boise, ID 83720
208- 332-2810
http://www.idsos.state.id.us/notary/apostill.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Chief Deputy Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State; Notary Public Clerk.

Illinois
Office of the Secretary of State
Index Department, Notaries Public Division
111 E. Monroe St.
Springfield, IL 62756
217- 217-782-7017
http://www.sos.state.il.us/departments/index/divisions.html#notary
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

Indiana
Office of Secretary of State
Statehouse
Suite 201
Indianapolis, IN 46204
317-232-6532
http://www.in.gov/sos/business/notary/
Fee: no charge
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State

Iowa
Office of Secretary of State
Lucas Building
First Floor, Public Service
Des Moines, IA 50319
515-281-5204
http://www.sos.state.ia.us
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State

Kansas
Office of Secretary of State
State Capitol
Second Floor
Topeka, KS 66612
913-296-2744
http://www.kssos.org
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; any Deputy Assistant Secretary of State.

Kentucky
Office of Secretary of State
Capitol Building
P.O. Box 718
Frankfort, KY 40602-0178
502-564-7330
Fee: $5.00
http://www.kysos.com
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State.

Louisiana
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 94125
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9125
504-342-4981
Fee: $5.00
http://www.sec.state.la.us/comm/comm-index.htm
Designated Authority: Secretary of State.

Maine
Office of Secretary of State
Bureau of Corporations
Elections and Commissions
101 State House Station
Augusta, ME 04333-0101
207-624-7650
http://www.maine.gov/sos/cec/notary/apostilles.html
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

Maryland
Office of Secretary of State
Statehouse
Annapolis, MD 21401
410-974-5520
http://www.sos.state.md.us/Forms.htm
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State.

Massachusetts
Secretary of the Commonwealth
Public Records Division
Commissions Section
McCormack Building, Room 1719
One Ashburton Place
Boston, MA 02108
617-727-2832
http://www.state.ma.us/sec/pre/precom/comidx.htm
Fee: $3.00

Michigan
Department of State
Office of the Great Seal
7064 Crowner Boulevard
Lansing, MI 48918
517-373-2531
http://www.michigan.gov/sos/1,1607,7-127-1638_8734---,00.html
Fee: $1.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

Minnesota
Secretary of State''s Office
180 State Office Bldg.
St. Paul, MN 55155
651-296-2803
http://www.sos.state.mn.us/uccd/authinfo.html
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

Mississippi
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 136
Jackson, MS 39205-0136
601-359-1615
http://www.sos.state.ms.us/busserv/notaries/notaries.asp
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; any Assistant Secretary of State.

Missouri
Office of Secretary of State
Commission Division
600 West Main, Room 367
Jefferson City, MO 65102
573-751-2783
http://www.sos.mo.gov/business/commissions/Default.asp
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

Montana
Office of the Secretary of State
Notary/Certification Division
State Capitol Rm 260
PO Box 202801
Helena MT 59620-2801
UPS-FedEx-DHL- etc. address: 1236 E 6th Ave Helena MT 59620
406-444-1877 (Tuesdays - Thursdays only)
http://www.sos.mt.gov/notary/index.asp
email: sosnotary@state.mt.us
Fee: $10.00 per document
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Any Deputy Secretary of State

Nebraska
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Division
Box 95104
State Capitol
Lincoln, NE 68509
402-471-2558
http://www.sos.ne.gov/business/notary/index.html
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

Nevada
Secretary of State
101 N. Carson Street, #3
Carson City, NV 89701-4786
775-684-5708
http://sos.state.nv.us/licensing/notary/generalinfo.asp
Fee: $20.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Chief Deputy Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

New Hampshire
Office of Secretary of State
Statehouse
Room 204
Concord, NH 03301
603-271-3242
http://www.state.nh.us/sos/certific.htm
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State

New Jersey
Department of State
Notary Public Unit
Division of Commercial Recording
PO Box 452
Trenton, NJ 08625
609-530-6421
http://www.state.nj.us/treasury/revenue/dcr/programs/notary.html
Fee: Regular Service: $25.00 Expedited Service: $35.00
Designated Authority: NJ Department of the Treasury, Division of Revenue

New Mexico
Office of the Secretary of State
State Capitol North Annex, Suite 300
Santa Fe, NM 87503
505-827-3600
http://www.sos.state.nm.us/sos-notary.html
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State

New York

·                  Upstate Counties
Miscellaneous Records
162 Washington Ave.
Albany, NY 12231
518-474-4770
http://www.dos.state.ny.us
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Executive Deputy Secretary of State; any Deputy Secretary of State; any Special Deputy Secretary of State.

·                  Down State Counties
New York authorities in Albany advise that documents issued in the nine down state counties are authenticated under the Convention by the New York City office. The nine down state counties are New York, Kings, Queens, Bronx, Westchester, Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland and Richmond. The address of the New York Department of State, Certification Unit is 6th Floor, 270 Broadway, New York, New York 10007, tel: 212-417-5684. Fee: $10.00

North Carolina
Office of Secretary of State
Authentication Division
PO Box 29622
Raleigh, NC 27626-0622
919-807-2140
http://www.secretary.state.nc.us/authen
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State

North Dakota
Office of Secretary of State
Capitol Building
600 E Boulevard Ave., Dept 108
Bismarck, ND 58505
701-328-2900
http://www.nd.gov/sos/notaryserv/
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

Ohio
Office of the Secretary of State
30 East Broad St.
15th Fl.
Columbus, OH 43266-0418
877-767-6446
http://www.sos.state.oh.us/SOS/Notary.aspx
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State.

Oklahoma
Office of Secretary of State
2300 N. Lincoln
Room 101
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
405-521-4211
http://www.sos.state.ok.us
Fee: $25.00 (cashiers check or money order)
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; Budget Officer of the Secretary of State.

Oregon
Office of Secretary of State
255 Capitol St.
Suite 151
Salem OR 97310
503-986-2200.
http://www.filinginoregon.com/notary/index.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State; Acting Secretary of State; Assistant to the Secretary of State.

Pennsylvania
Department of State
Bureau of Commissions
Elections and Legislation
North Office Building
Room 210
Harrisburg, PA 17120
717-787-5280
http://www.sos.state.oh.us/SOS/Notary.aspx
Fee: $15.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of the Commonwealth; Executive Deputy Secretary of the Commonwealth.

Rhode Island
Office of Secretary of State
Notary Division
100 N. Main St.
Providence, RI 02903
401-277-1487
http://www.corps.state.ri.us/notaries/notaries.htm
Fee: $5.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; First Deputy Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State

South Carolina
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 11350
Columbia, SC 29211
803-734-2119
http://www.scsos.com/notariesbc.htm
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State

South Dakota
Office of Secretary of State
500 East Capitol
Pierre, SD 57501-5077
605-773-5004
http://www.state.sd.us/sos/Notaries/apostilles_and_authentications.htm
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State

Tennessee
Office of Secretary of State
James K. Polk Building
Division of Business Services
312 Eighth Avenue North
6th Floor, William R. Snodgrass Tower
Nashville, TN 37243
615-741-3699
http://tennessee.gov/sos/bus_svc/notary.htm
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State.

Texas
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 12079
Austin, TX 78711
512-463-5705
http://www.sos.state.tx.us/statdoc/index.shtml
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State

Utah
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
210 State Capitol
Salt Lake City, UT 84145-8414
801-538-1040
http://notary.utah.gov/
Fee: Certifying Notary''s Seal: $10.00 Apostille: $5.00
Designated Authority: Lieutenant Governor; Deputy Lieutenant Governor; Administrative Assistant.

Vermont
Office of Secretary of State
109 State St.
Montpelier, VT 05609-1103
802-828-2308
http://www.sec.state.vt.us
Fee: $2.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

Virginia
Office of Secretary of Commonwealth
Authentications Division
830 East Main Street, 14th Floor
Richmond, VA 23219
804-786-2441
http://www.soc.state.va.us
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of the Commonwealth; Chief Clerk, Office of the Secretary of Commonwealth.

Washington
Office of the Secretary of State
Corporations Division
Apostille and Certificate Program
PO Box 40228
Olympia, WA 98504-0228
360-586-2268
http://www.secstate.wa.gov/apostilles
Fee: $15.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State; Director, Department of Licensing.

West Virginia
Office of Secretary of State
Capitol Building
1900 Kanawha Blvd. East
 No. 157-K
Charleston, WV 25305-0770
304-558-6000
http://www.wvsos.com/execrecords/other/authentication.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Under Secretary of State; any Deputy Secretary of State.

Wisconsin
Office of Secretary of State
P.O. Box 7848
Madison, WI 53707-7848
608-266-3159
http://badger.state.wi.us/agencies/sos/authen.htm
Fee: $10.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Assistant Secretary of State.

Wyoming
Office of Secretary of State
The Capitol
Cheyenne, WY 82002-0020
307-777-5342
http://soswy.state.wy.us/AdminServices/NotariesOverview.aspx
Fee: $3.00
Designated Authority: Secretary of State; Deputy Secretary of State.

American Samoa
Office of the Governor
Pago Pago, AS 96799
011-684-633-4116
http://www.amsamoa.com
Designated Authority: Secretary of American Samoa; Attorney General of American Samoa.

Guam (Territory of)
Office of the Governor
P.O. Box 2950
Agana, GU 96910
011-671-472-1537
http://www.guam.gov/
Designated Authority: Department of Administration

Northern Mariana Islands (Commonwealth of the)
Designated Authority: Attorney General; Acting Attorney General; Clerk of the Court, Commonwealth Trial Court; Deputy Clerk, Commonwealth Trial Court
http://www.saipan.com/

Puerto Rico (Commonwealth of)
Supreme Court of Puerto Rico
Office of Notarial Inspection
P.O. Box 190860
San Juan, PR 00919-0860
787-763-8816
http://www.lexjuris.com/lexnotaria.htm
Designated Authority: Supreme Court of Puerto Rico

U.S. Virgin Islands
Office of the Lieutenant Governor
7 & 8 King St.
Christiansted, St. Croix, USVI 00802
340-774-2991
http://www.ltg.gov.vi/Departments/Administration/index.html
No authority designated: refer requests to the U.S. Department of State, Authentications Office, 2400 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20520. 202-647-5002

 

III.  MEDICAL REPORT

There is a medical self-health statement requirement as well.  For more information, please see http://seoul.immigration.go.kr/HP/IMM80/index.do .

 

IV. LINKS:

All of the information contained in this handout can be accessed on the State Department website at:

Criminal Record Checks:

http://travel.state.gov/travel/tips/emergencies/emergencies_1201.html

Authentication Procedures:

 

http://travel.state.gov/law/info/judicial/judicial_2086.html