Parental authority and custody:
showing where the child will grow up more stably

Parental authority versus custody

Parental authority (chinkwon) is the power to perform legal acts on the child's behalf and to manage the child's property. Custody (yangyukkwon) is the right to keep the child with you and raise the child directly. While married, both parents share parental authority, but after separating, each role must be assigned. Usually one parent holds both, but it is also permitted for the mother and father to hold one each.

These cases (designation of the custodial parent, designation or change of the holder of parental authority) are Category Ma non-contentious family cases, so mediation is required before a petition for a ruling (Articles 2(1)(ii)(b) and 50 of the Family Litigation Act).

Criteria for choosing the custodial parent

The Supreme Court has held that the court must consider all circumstances together, including the child's sex and age, each parent's affection and willingness to raise the child, financial capacity, whether the parenting plan proposed by each parent is reasonable, the closeness between the child and each parent, and the child's wishes, and decide in the way most beneficial to the child's growth and welfare (Supreme Court Decision 2018Meu15534, decided May 14, 2020). In court, particular weight is given to who took on the child's care after the parents began living apart and whether the child's current daily life is being maintained without disruption.

In the same decision, the Supreme Court set out three conditions for naming both parents as custodial parents: the parents agree to raise the child together, the two homes are not far apart, and the child can adapt to living in two households. In cases where each parent insists on raising the child alone, this arrangement is rarely adopted.

If the child is 13 or older, the court must hear directly from the child before reaching its conclusion. This is omitted only when hearing the child is impossible or would actually harm the child (Articles 18-2 and 100 of the Family Litigation Rules). Even for younger children, a family court investigator observes how the child is living and the child's state of mind.

What records to gather

Existing records carry more weight than words. Materials showing who has organized the child's ordinary day are far more persuasive than written submissions criticizing the other spouse.

• Evidence of past caregiving: school notices and newsletters, records of meetings with the homeroom teacher, vaccination records and medical receipts, payment records for after-school academies
• Plans for the future: your work arrangements and how you will handle school drop-off and pick-up, the conditions of your home, family members who will help
• Risks on the other side: if there is a history of violence or abuse, medical certificates, records of police reports and counseling, photos
• The child's current situation: how the child has adjusted since the separation, and psychological counseling records if any

Even in a divorce by agreement, if there is a child, you must wait three months after the court's guidance session (Article 836-2(2) of the Civil Act), and you must also submit an agreement on child rearing during that time. If you strongly disagree about child rearing, going directly to mediation or litigation may save time compared with insisting on a divorce by agreement.

Temporary custodial parent during the case

A divorce lawsuit lasts from several months to more than a year. If gaps arise in the child's care during that time, or one parent secretly takes the child, you can apply for a prior disposition that first sets who will care for the child until the judgment, and the child support and visitation arrangements for that period (Article 62(1) of the Family Litigation Act). This disposition cannot be enforced by compulsory execution, but a party who fails to comply without reason can be fined up to KRW 10 million (Articles 62(5) and 67(1) of the same Act).

1. Document your caregivingRecord with dates the times you took the child to and from school, to the doctor, met with teachers, and took care of meals and daily life.
2. Apply for a temporary dispositionWhen filing the application for mediation or the complaint, request at once a temporary custodial parent and the child support and visitation arrangements for that period.
3. Prepare for the investigator interviewPrepare so that when the investigator visits your home or interviews you, you can speak concretely, not vaguely, about how you will raise the child, your living environment, and who will help you.
4. After the decisionOnce the final decision is issued, complete the follow-up steps, such as reporting the holder of parental authority.

Changing arrangements after they are set

The child-rearing terms set at divorce are not fixed. If necessary for the child, a parent, the child, or the prosecutor may apply for a change, and the court may also change them on its own initiative (Article 837(5) of the Civil Act). A claim to change the holder of parental authority is filed by a relative of the child within the fourth degree (Article 909(6)). Commonly accepted grounds include neglect or abuse by the current custodial parent, the child having already lived well with the other parent for a considerable period, and the child clearly saying that they want to live with the other parent.

If parental authority has been abused so as to seriously harm the child, or there is a risk of that, a claim can also be filed to terminate parental authority entirely or suspend it for up to two years (Article 924). In either case, pointing only to a change in the parent's own circumstances will not work. Put at the center of your argument how the child's life will improve after the change.

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Written on the basis of Korean statutes in force (National Law Information Center, Ministry of Government Legislation) and court precedents as of October 20, 2026. Results may differ with amendments to the law or the facts of each case. This page is general information, not legal advice.

Written and reviewed by Attorney Dongwoo Shin — Ph.D. in Law; certified criminal law specialist and certified divorce law specialist registered with the Korean Bar Association. He handles each case personally from consultation to judgment. About the attorney →
Last updated October 20, 2026