When an Accident or a Death Happens in Korea — Hospital, Police, Embassy: Who Does What

If an accident is happening in front of you right now, stop reading this and dial ☎119 first. Rescue comes first, paperwork comes after.

When an accident or a death happens in Korea, the hospital treats under the Emergency Medical Service Act, the police establish the cause of death under the Criminal Procedure Act and the Rules on Police Investigation, and your home country's mission receives a notification. But none of the three stands in for the others. The police notifying your mission does not start a compensation claim.

This article only covers "who does what inside Korea." We have not put down figures for repatriation requirements, how long it takes from the inspection to the release of the body, or what a family receives, because we could not confirm them against primary sources.

First, Work Out Whether You Need Rescue, a Report, or a Notification

Which number you call first changes the days that follow. Sort the three tracks out before anything else.

☎1345 is open only on weekdays during the day, and after 18:00 you may only reach Korean, English, or Chinese, so it cannot be your first interpretation route for a late-night emergency. At night, call ☎1330 or ☎1577-1366. We could not confirm whether ☎119 offers direct foreign-language support, so connect a 24-hour line alongside it.

The Hospital — Treatment Doesn't Ask Your Nationality, but the Bill Stays

Article 3 of the Emergency Medical Service Act reads like this: "All citizens shall have the right to receive emergency medical services without discrimination on grounds of gender, age, ethnicity, religion, social status, economic circumstances, or the like. The same shall apply to foreign nationals staying in the Republic of Korea" (as in force in 2026). The article does not make residence status or insurance enrollment a condition.

Refusal is blocked as well. Emergency medical personnel who find an emergency patient or are asked to treat one must provide emergency medical services immediately, and may not refuse or evade doing so without justifiable grounds (Article 6(2) of the same Act). A violation carries imprisonment of up to 3 years or a criminal fine of up to 30 million won (Article 60(3) of the same Act, as of 2026).

The documents that prove a death split into two tracks. Both come up in cremation reporting and in industrial accident claims, so make sure you know which one you were given.

The basis is Article 17 of the Medical Service Act, and the same article provides that a person who personally treated or examined the deceased may not refuse a request to issue these documents without justifiable grounds (as in force in 2026). If the death happened outside a hospital or the cause is unclear, this is where it crosses over to the police track. For everyday hospital visits, we've put it together in How Foreigners Use Hospitals in Korea.

The Police — An Inspection Isn't an Investigation of You, It Establishes the Cause of Death

Two misunderstandings need clearing up before we start. An inspection (검시) is not a procedure that investigates the bereaved family; it is a procedure that establishes the cause of death. And an inspection and an autopsy are two different procedures.

Article 222(1) of the Criminal Procedure Act provides that where there is a body of an unnatural death or one suspected of it, the prosecutor of the competent district prosecutors' office shall conduct the inspection, and paragraph 3 allows the prosecutor to order a judicial police officer to conduct it (as in force in 2026). An unnatural death (변사) means a death that was not from illness or natural causes and is therefore suspected of having been caused by a crime.

It does not end with the police alone either. A judicial police officer must notify the prosecutor of the occurrence of an unnatural-death case using a prescribed form (Article 26 of the Rules on Police Investigation).

There are three provisions worth knowing as a family member.

• A physician takes part — when an inspection is conducted, a physician must be involved, and that physician must be the one to prepare the postmortem examination certificate (Article 27(1) of the Rules on Police Investigation).
• Including the family is the default — where it is deemed that there is no particular impediment, the family and relatives of the deceased, along with neighbors and friends, must be allowed to take part in the inspection (Article 30 of the same Rules).
• The rules say not to hold up the funeral — when conducting an inspection, officers must "proceed with the procedure promptly so as not to cause unnecessary impediment to the bereaved family's funeral arrangements" (Article 29, subparagraph 6 of the same Rules).

"Foreigners always get autopsied" has no basis. An inspection is the procedure for preparing the examination certificate, while an autopsy falls under verification (검증) and goes down a separate path.

When the Body Comes Back to the Family — the "Time of Completion" the Rules Define

Article 31(1) of the Rules on Police Investigation provides that when the inspection or the verification is complete, the body shall be released promptly to the bereaved family together with the personal effects, and where there is no one to receive it or the identity is unknown, it goes to the mayor, county governor, or district office head. That "time of completion" is defined in paragraph 2 of the same Article.

When you receive the body, you sign a receipt form for the body and the personal effects (paragraph 3 of the same Article).

How the Notification Reaches Your Mission — Notifying Is Mandatory, Paying Is Not

When a foreign national dies, a notification goes to their home country's mission, and the basis comes in two layers. Article 91(4) of the Rules on Police Investigation provides that when an unnatural death of a foreign national occurs, notification must be given without delay using the consular death notification form (as in force in 2026). Article 37(a) of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations overlaps with this, but we could not re-verify that provision or Korea's date of entry into force (Treaty No. 594, April 6, 1977) against the original treaty text.

There is one contrast that stands out clearly. Under the same Article 91, notification of an arrest or detention happens only if the person requests it, but death notification is a police duty regardless of any request.

That said, a notification going out does not mean the mission pays the costs. Several governments' own published lists of "what we cannot do" include paying money on your behalf. There is more in How to Get Help from an Embassy or Consulate in Korea and How to Find Your Country's Mission in Korea.

Moving the remains home is not something this article answers. The requirements change completely with nationality, airline, and home-country rules, so generalizing is impossible. Always go through your home country's mission first.

Funerals, Cremation, and Burial — Korean Rules Come First

Article 6 of the Act on Funeral Services, Etc. provides that burial or cremation may not take place until 24 hours have passed from the time of death or stillbirth. This is not a ceiling saying it must be done within 24 hours; it is a floor saying it cannot be done until 24 hours have passed. The exceptions are narrow — a stillborn baby of less than seven months' gestation, a death from an infectious disease requiring urgent quarantine measures, a case where organ removal from a brain-dead donor has been completed, and the like. A violation carries imprisonment of up to 1 year or a criminal fine of up to 10 million won (as in force in 2026).

This rule can collide head-on with religious practice back home. Some traditions treat burial on the day of death as a religious obligation, and there is no way to move the 24 hours up in Korea other than the exceptions above. It is better to know in advance and plan the schedule around it.

There is a separate report to file, too. For cremation, you file with the mayor, county governor, or district office head with jurisdiction over the location of the cremation facility, attaching the death certificate or the postmortem examination certificate (Article 8 of the same Act). Burial is subject to reporting under the same article. Failing to report carries an administrative fine of up to 3 million won, and cremating outside a licensed cremation facility carries imprisonment of up to 1 year or a criminal fine of up to 10 million won (as in force in 2026).

Where the Money Comes From — Three Tracks That Differ From Each Other

The window depends on the cause of death. And one being closed does not close the rest.

The most important provision on the industrial accident side is Article 36(2) of the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act. It provides that insurance benefits are paid upon the claim of the person entitled to them. That means the party who moves survivors' benefits and funeral expenses is the family, not the company. Waiting on the belief that the company will take care of it and letting the limitation period run out is a route people really do take.

A work-related accident splits into three branches — work accidents, work-related diseases, and commuting accidents (Article 37(1) of the same Act) — and commuting accidents cover not only transport provided by the employer but also accidents that happen while commuting by ordinary routes and means.

The calculation basis is in the statute. The lump-sum survivors' compensation is 1,300 days of average wages (Article 62(2) of the same Act), and funeral expenses are 120 days of average wages (Article 71(1) of the same Act). That said, the maximum and minimum funeral expense amounts are set by public notice, and we could not pin down which year's figures apply, so we have not written them here. How long a decision takes also varies with the type of case. Confirm amounts and procedures at ☎1588-0075.

"The company wasn't enrolled in industrial accident insurance" is not a reason to give up on a claim either. The insured party is the employer who uses the workers (Article 5(3) of the Insurance Premium Collection Act), and for an accident that occurred during a period when the employer neglected to report the establishment of the insurance relationship, COMWEL can pay the benefits and then collect that amount from the employer (Article 26(1)1 of the same Act). If wages and severance pay are tangled up in it too, see What You Can Still Claim Without Residence Status.

For a hit-and-run or an accident involving a vehicle without mandatory insurance, there is a separate government compensation program under Article 30 of the Guarantee of Automobile Accident Compensation Act. It is a system where the government compensates within the liability insurance limits upon the victim's claim, but cases that can be compensated through industrial accident compensation insurance and the like are excluded. Claims must be filed within 3 years from the day you learned of the damage.

For people who were working on an E-9 or H-2, there is one more insurance. The casualty insurance under Article 23(2) of the Act on the Employment, Etc. of Foreign Workers is meant for injuries and illnesses other than work-related accidents, and it is structured to pay up to 30 million won for death or permanent disability and 15 million won for death from illness (Article 28(2)2 of the Enforcement Decree of the same Act, as of 2026-08). It is separate from industrial accident insurance, and families often do not know it exists at all.

This article does not make the calls where residence status is involved. What effect a report or a claim has on your stay is a separate question, so ask ☎1345 and ☎132 about that on its own.

The Paperwork the Survivors Face, and What to Put in Order Now

A death report must be filed within 1 month of the day you learned of the death, with the death certificate or the postmortem examination certificate attached (Article 84(1) of the Act on Registration of Family Relations, Etc.). The person obliged to report is a relative living with the deceased, but relatives and cohabitants, the person managing the place of death, and the neighborhood or village head may also file (Article 85 of the same Act). The place of filing is the place of death, burial, or cremation (Article 86 of the same Act). Missing the deadline carries an administrative fine of up to 50,000 won (Article 122 of the same Act, as in force in 2026).

That said, foreign nationals have no family relations register in Korea, so the way it is actually handled may differ, and we could not confirm that part. For your own case, check with the city, district, town, or township office with jurisdiction over the place of death. The alien registration card also has to be returned (Article 37(2) of the Immigration Act). Who returns it and within how many days is delegated to Presidential Decree, so it needs to be confirmed at ☎1345.

The point where bereaved families waste the most trips is documents. The death certificate, the postmortem examination certificate, and the receipt form all come out in Korean. To use them for inheritance or an insurance claim back home you need translation and consular authentication, but which documents are required and in what form is a home-country rule, so Korean offices cannot answer it. Ask your home country's mission before you go get them issued.

Last is the preparation you can do right now. If you live alone in Korea, keep copies of your passport and alien registration card, your family's contact details back home, and the details of the insurance you hold (travel insurance, health insurance, industrial accident, casualty insurance) all in one place. The people left behind need this information to be able to move at all.

If you need more on each of these contacts, it's in A Complete Rundown of Official Support Lines for Foreigners.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1. I don't have insurance — will the ER take me? Article 3 of the Emergency Medical Service Act puts it in writing that "the same shall apply to foreign nationals staying in the Republic of Korea," and Article 6(2) of the same Act prohibits refusing or evading treatment (a violation carries imprisonment of up to 3 years or a criminal fine of up to 30 million won, Article 60(3) of the same Act, as of 2026). But receiving treatment and the bill disappearing are two different things. The advance payment of unpaid emergency medical expenses is a system where the hospital files the claim, the fund management agency pays on its behalf, and the amount is then reclaimed from the patient, their spouse, lineal blood relatives within one degree, and others (Article 22(1) and (4) of the same Act). We could not find stated guidance on how it applies to foreign nationals, so check with the hospital's billing office and the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service.

Q2. Is an autopsy automatic when a foreign national dies? No. An inspection and an autopsy are different procedures. An inspection is the procedure of having a physician take part and prepare the examination certificate (Article 27(1) of the Rules on Police Investigation), while an autopsy falls under verification and proceeds separately. That is exactly why Article 31(2) of the same Rules defines "inspection complete" and "when the autopsy is finished" separately. An inspection is not a procedure that investigates the bereaved family but one that establishes the cause of death, and where there is no particular impediment, including the family is the default (Article 30 of the same Rules).

Q3. When will the police return the body? Article 31(1) of the Rules on Police Investigation provides that when the inspection or the verification is complete, the body shall be released promptly to the bereaved family together with the personal effects, and paragraph 2 of the same Article defines the "time of completion" by splitting it into inspection complete and autopsy complete. There is also a rule that when conducting an inspection, officers must not cause unnecessary impediment to the bereaved family's funeral arrangements (Article 29, subparagraph 6 of the same Rules). That said, the rules set no time limit, and we could not confirm how long it actually takes. Ask the police station handling the case about how it's progressing.

Q4. The company says it wasn't enrolled in industrial accident insurance. Do we lose the survivors' benefits? The insured party is not the worker but the employer who uses the workers (Article 5(3) of the Insurance Premium Collection Act). For an accident that occurred during a period when the employer neglected to report the establishment of the insurance relationship, COMWEL can pay the benefits and then collect that amount from the employer (Article 26(1)1 of the same Act). And survivors' benefits and funeral expenses are paid on a claim by the person entitled to them, not by the company (Article 36(2) of the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act). The limitation period is 5 years, counted from the day after the work-related death (Article 112(1) of the same Act). Confirm the procedure at ☎1588-0075.

Q5. The death was caused by a crime — can we receive state compensation? Article 16 of the Crime Victim Protection Act provides that the state shall pay compensation where the crime damage eligible for compensation has not been made good, and the application goes to the District Deliberation Committee with jurisdiction over your address, place of residence, or the place where the crime occurred (Article 25(1) of the same Act). For foreign nationals, though, there is one more condition attached. Article 23 of the same Act provides that where a foreign national is the victim eligible for compensation or a bereaved family member, the Act applies only if there is a reciprocal guarantee from the country concerned (as in force in 2026). We could not confirm which countries qualify, so check at ☎132. An application can no longer be made once 3 years have passed from the day you learned of it or 10 years from the date it occurred (Article 25(2) of the same Act).