The Government of South Korea
Overview
- Capital: Seoul
- Administrative regions: 17 first-level divisions (9 provinces, 6 metropolitan cities, Seoul special city, and special self-governing units)
- Government & legal system: Presidential republic; civil law system. (government site)
- Head of state / government: Lee Jae-myung, President (official page)
- Official language(s): Korean (official)
- National Day: October 3 (Gaecheonjeol, National Foundation Day); Liberation Day August 15 also widely marked
- Independence: August 15, 1945 (liberation from Japanese colonial rule)
- Other official holidays: Seollal (Lunar New Year), Chuseok, Constitution Day (Jul 17)
- Korea International Cooperation Agency/ KOICA (official site)
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs (official site)
- Regional / international memberships: UN, Organization for Economic Cooperaton and Development/ OECD, G20, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, APEC, World Trade Organization/ WTO
- Visa / entry requirements: K-ETA electronic travel authorization required for visa-exempt visitors. (visa info)
- Currency: South Korean won (KRW) — notes depict Confucian scholars Shin Saimdang (₩50,000), King Sejong the Great (₩10,000), Yi I (₩5,000), and Yi Hwang (₩1,000).
- Flag symbolism: Taegukgi — white field with a central red-and-blue Taeguk (yin-yang) symbol representing cosmic balance, surrounded by four black trigrams representing heaven, earth, water, and fire.
