Court supports denial of citizenship for foreign man caught drunk driving

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By Lee Hyo-jin

A local court ruled that rejecting the naturalization application of a foreign national who was convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol was legitimate, as he failed to meet the requirements of having a “good moral character” under the Nationality Act.

The Seoul Administrative Court ruled that a Ministry of Justice decision to deny naturalization for a Nepalese man was proper Monday, rejecting his petition against the decision.

The man, who came to Korea in March 2014 and acquired a marriage visa (F-6-1 visa) after marrying a Korean woman in June that year, applied for naturalization in May 2018.

But the ministry denied the application in February 2020, citing his failure to “behave appropriately” as he had been convicted of drunk driving and fined in November 2019, during the examination period for his naturalization application.

During the hearing, the man claimed that the court should take into consideration the circumstances of his drunk driving, as he was taking his wife to the hospital after she was found unconscious in a car following a dinner gathering and he was concerned “it might be hypothermia or a stroke.”

However, the court did not accept the claim, saying, “His crime cannot be justified as the reason he misunderstood his wife's condition seems to have been due to excessive drinking.”

At the time of the drunk driving, his blood alcohol content was 0.186 percent, well beyond the level for license cancelation of 0.08 percent, according to the court.

“Also, committing a DUI offense during the examination period for his naturalization permit makes it difficult to recognize him as having sufficiently good conduct to be accepted as a member of Korean society,” it said.

The court added that as naturalization applications can be made an unlimited number of times, he may be able to apply again after proving his good moral character by following the law.