= Registration to Vote Overseas for the 21st National Assembly Elections to be held from November 17  =

Voters who are scheduled to be outside the country on election day and wish to vote from overseas for the 21st National Assembly elections should register from November 17. The registration period will last until February 15 2020.

Overseas absentee voters, such as exchange students, workers dispatched abroad or travelers who still have a registered address in Korea can report they will be voting overseas without attaching any additional documents by visiting a diplomatic mission themselves, by post, email or by visiting the report and registration homepage (http://ova.nec.go.kr). 

Meanwhile, Korean citizens over the age of 19 who did not have a resident registration number in Korea should register as a overseas voter. It is possible to register at any time to be an overseas voter, but in order to vote during the 21st National Assembly elections voters should complete their applications by February 15th 2020. 

As a result of the introduction of the permanent overseas voters list, any voter that participated and cast their ballot as an overseas voter during the 20th National Assembly election or the 19th presidential election do not need to register again. However, overseas voters who do not participate in overseas voting for two elections or more in a row will be removed from the list and must apply for registration again (if there are any changes to a voter’s status, then they need to register the changes).

It is possible for a voter to check whether or not they are registered on the permanent list on the report and registration homepage (http://ova.nec.go.kr). 

In order to increase overseas Koreans'' participation in the voting, the NEC will use various media channels to promote voting, including:  

• Adverts on major portal sites and Google banners

• Adverts on YouTube and through social networking sites of related agencies and organizations

• TV satellite broadcasting TV and adverts in international newspapers for Koreans

In addition, overseas election commissions set up at 176 diplomatic missions around the world are visiting places with a large number of Korean expatriates or places where Koreans travel regularly to encourage participation in overseas voting. 

The NEC said that ‘we will make utmost efforts to ensure accurate and fair election management for the 21st National Assembly elections as well as ensuring the suffrage of overseas Koreans’ and called for active participation in and attention towards overseas elections.