Honorary citizen is an honor bestowed by South Korea's Minister of Justice on foreigners of exceptional merit. It is a symbolic honor; the recipient does not take the Oath of Citizenship and thus does not receive any rights, privileges, or duties typically held by a citizen of South Korea.
It is not to be confused with special naturalisation under Article 7 of the Nationality Act, under which the recipient actually becomes a citizen of South Korea. Such special naturalisation has for example been granted by the Minister of Justice to Martine Prost for her contribution on returning from France.[1]
The regulations governing grants of honorary citizenship are found in Article 22 of the Nationality Administrative Processing Directions. Paragraph 1 provides the criteria: foreigners may be granted honorary citizenship if they have received an order, decoration, or medal from the South Korean government; in recognition of contributions in the fields of security, society, economy, or the arts; or for other contribution at a level similar to the two previously mentioned. Paragraph 3 provides that an honorary citizen of South Korea can enjoy special immigration privileges under ordinances from the Minister of Justice.[2]
As of June 2018, four people have been granted honorary citizenship of South Korea.
| Name | Nationality | Award date | Information | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guus Hiddink | 2 July 2002 | South Korea national football team head coach who first led the team to a semi-final of the FIFA World Cup.[3] | |
| 2 | 8 June 2016 | Austrian nun who worked as a nurse at the leper colony on Sorokdo, South Jeolla Province from 1962 to 2005.[4] | ||
| 3 |  Austria | 8 June 2016 | Austrian nun who worked as a nurse at the leper colony on Sorokdo, South Jeolla Province from 1966 to 2005. | |
| 4 | Patrick James McGlinchey |  Ireland | 5 June 2018 | Irish Catholic missionary who settled in Jeju and contributed to agriculture there. Awarded posthumously.[5] |