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.
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.
List As of June 2018, four people have been granted honorary citizenship of South Korea.
# Name Nationality Award date Information 1Guus Hiddink(born 1946) 2 July 2002 South Korea national football team head coachwho first led the team toa semi-final of the FIFA World Cup. 2 (born 1934) 8 June 2016 Austrian nun who worked as a nurseat the leper colony on Sorokdo, South Jeolla Provincefrom 1962 to 2005. 3 Margaritha Pissarek(1935–2023) 8 June 2016 Austrian nun who worked as a nurse at the leper colony on Sorokdo, South Jeolla Province from1966 to 2005. 4Patrick James McGlinchey(1928–2018) 5 June 2018 Irish Catholic missionary who settledin Jeju and contributed to agriculture there.Awarded posthumously.
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