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Korean adoptees living overseas are now able to submit a DNA sample at a South Korean foreign mission in an effort to locate their family. Previously, they’d been required to travel to Korea and visit a police station if they wanted to run a DNA search for their family.

South Korea’s National Police Agency, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on Dec. 19 that they would be launching a service on Jan. 1, 2020 through which Koreans adopted overseas as children can submit and register their DNA at foreign diplomatic offices if they’d like to find their family.

Overseas Korean missions offering genetic testing (34 missions in 14 countries)

According to the National Police Agency and others, overseas Korean adoptees who submit an adoption information disclosure request with the National Center for the Rights of the Child (NCRC), and who receive written confirmation that no remaining information exists regarding their biological parents, may make an appointment with one of 34 overseas government agencies in 14 countries to undergo genetic testing. These overseas adoptees with no access to information on their biological parents are eligible for genetic testing as “children without family or friends” under the Act on the Protection and Support of Missing Children, etc. In some cases, they may have been adopted overseas without consent from their biological parents due to circumstances including disappearance. In the past 60 years, around 170,000 South Korean children were adopted by parents in 14 countries. In an estimated 30,000 of those cases, no remaining information exists on their biological parents.

Once collected at an overseas government office, DNA samples are submitted to the NPA via diplomatic pouch. If testing confirms a match with genetic information for missing family members, a second confirmation is performed and reunion procedures are carried out with the NCRC’s support.

“Finding missing persons is an issue all of us need to be joining forces to resolve, and we look forward to being able to find more long-term missing children with the cooperation of related agencies,” said NPA Commissioner General Min Gap-ryong.

“We will continue to search for diverse and effective ways of locating family members of long-term missing persons,” Min said.

By Jung Hwan-bong, staff reporter

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