Interior ministry says 1,658 administrative services now require fewer documents

South Korea's interior ministry said Monday it has completed the streamlining of required documents for 1,658 administrative services, cutting the paperwork citizens must obtain and submit when applying for government services.

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety said the policy lets applicants skip separate document issuance by agreeing to let officials verify the needed information directly through government computer networks. It completed 421 services in 2024, 679 in 2025 and 558 in the first three quarters of 2026.

Small-business and business-operator services made up the largest share at 535, or 32.3 percent, followed by 204 services for people with disabilities, older adults, the vulnerable and veterans, and 193 related to living costs, taxes and fee reductions, the ministry said. Student, youth and education services accounted for 124, family and childcare services 107, and qualification checks 86. Laborer services numbered 84, farming and fishing services 67, and other categories 258.

Local governments deliver 55.6 percent of the streamlined services, putting the changes in the municipal offices where residents handle most day-to-day business.

More than 100 million information lookups have been made since 2024 as a result of the reductions, the ministry said, saving citizens the time and social and economic cost of obtaining documents in person.

The ministry said it expanded the categories of administrative information shared between agencies to 181 in 2026 from 174 in 2025, and standardized 143 services commonly handled by local governments. It said 882 institutions now participate, including 402 administrative bodies, 442 public institutions and 38 financial institutions.

"Having completed the streamlining of submission documents for 1,658 administrative services from 2024 through this year, centering on small business owners, vulnerable groups and reductions in living expenses, we have cut the time and cost citizens spend using administrative services in their busy daily lives," Interior Minister Yun Ho-jung said. "The ministry will continue to expand document simplification so citizens can use administrative services more easily and conveniently, and will do its utmost to realize a true one-stop administrative service that citizens can feel."

The ministry cited postpartum care subsidies, dementia treatment and management support, airport parking fee discounts for families with multiple children, youth job-seeking support, the national lifelong learning card and rural basic income as examples of services affected. It said it plans to keep identifying new categories of administrative information for shared use to expand the reductions further.