If you can't attend the confirmation hearing for divorce by agreement

When you apply for a divorce by agreement (협의이혼), you are usually told about two confirmation hearings (확인기일) at once, both set after the cooling-off period (숙려기간) ends. If one of you could not attend the first hearing, you do not need to reapply; just check the date of the second hearing.

Both spouses must attend the confirmation hearing together with their ID. One spouse cannot attend alone to receive the confirmation, and a lawyer cannot attend on your behalf. If you want to change the date, do not just show up on another day; ask the court handling the case first.

At the confirmation hearing, the judge asks whether you intend to divorce, and if there are minor children, checks the agreement. If the agreement does not serve the child's welfare, the court may issue a correction order (보정명령), and if you do not comply, it will not issue the confirmation (Rules on the Registration of Family Relationships (가족관계의 등록 등에 관한 규칙) Article 78(1), proviso).

Notice of the confirmation hearing may come by simple means such as phone or fax, so do not change the contact details you wrote on the application (Rules on the Registration of Family Relationships Article 73(6)).

If either spouse fails to appear twice after receiving notice, the application for confirmation is treated as withdrawn (Rules on the Registration of Family Relationships Article 77(2)). This does not mean you are divorced or that the divorce was refused; the application process has simply ended.

If you both still want a divorce, you can simply apply again. The previous case is not revived, so check with the court how the cooling-off period and confirmation hearings will be set in the new application. If you have minor children, you also submit the agreement again. An application is also treated as withdrawn if you do not receive the divorce guidance within 3 months of applying (Article 77(3) of the same Rules).

It is hard to say in advance whether the cooling-off period starts over when you reapply or whether the earlier period is taken into account. If there are urgent circumstances such as violence, ask again for shortening or waiver in the new application.

If your spouse is not attending because they no longer want a divorce, reapplying for divorce by agreement any number of times will not solve it. A divorce by agreement is a procedure that requires both spouses to intend to divorce.

In that case, you need to file for divorce mediation (조정) or go to a lawsuit. Mediation has no cooling-off period, and once mediation succeeds, the record can be used for compulsory execution of property and child support. If your spouse seems to be moving assets while dragging things out by avoiding the confirmation hearing, we also consider a provisional attachment (가압류).

Conversely, if you are the one who has changed your mind and does not want to attend, it is cleaner to withdraw the application before the confirmation than to skip the hearings. You can withdraw the application at any time until the confirmation is given (Rules on the Registration of Family Relationships Article 77(1)).

• Do not delete messages in which your spouse said they refuse the divorce; save them.
• The existing settlement agreement and the agreement on the children also serve as reference material in mediation.
• If you want to divorce on the ground of infidelity, there is a 6-month period from when you learned of it, so check the dates (Civil Act (민법) Article 841).

Even after receiving the court's confirmation, you are not divorced yet. You must report the divorce (이혼신고) to the city hall, district office, or town or township office within 3 months of receiving the certified copy of the confirmation, and once this period passes, the court's confirmation loses its effect (Act on the Registration of Family Relationships (가족관계의 등록 등에 관한 법률) Article 75). Either spouse may file the report.

If you change your mind before the report, you can submit a withdrawal of intent to divorce (이혼의사철회서) with the certified copy of the confirmation attached. However, if your spouse files the divorce report first, that report is accepted (Rules on the Registration of Family Relationships Article 80).

If you have minor children, you write the person with parental authority set by agreement on the divorce report (Act on the Registration of Family Relationships Article 74).

If one spouse is a Korean national living abroad or is in a prison or detention center and cannot attend, the spouse in Korea can attend alone to apply, and the court entrusts the confirmation to a Korean embassy or consulate or the correctional facility (Rules on the Registration of Family Relationships Articles 73(2) and 74(2)). If both spouses live abroad, they can apply together at a Korean embassy or consulate.

If the hearing is close and your spouse has cut off contact, send us a message through the chat on this page. At Jisan Law, the managing partner hears you personally, and we decide together whether to wait for the next hearing or switch to mediation.