Learn how to set up your COOV app with these step by step instructions provided by SOS Public Health.

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Many of our multinational community members living in South Korea have been wondering about how to register their overseas COVID vaccines in Korea. This blog provides some information on how to register an overseas vaccination in Korea and who is eligible to.

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Why would I need to have my COVID vaccination certificate printed in English? The vaccination process in South Korea has been picking up speed over the last couple of months, particularly among our expat teacher community. If you completed both doses of the COVID vaccine in South Korea, then you should have received a vaccination certificate similar to the one pictured below. Your vaccination certificate is also available on the COOV app which you have access to if you have a contracted Korean phone number under your name. While you can use this certificate and the COOV app as proof of vaccination within Korea, you CANNOT use it when traveling abroad. Some countries that accept vaccinations completed in Korea require an English version of the certificate. So, how can you get access to your English translated certificate? Read the extremely long and detailed instruction manual below to find out! Listen to the BlogCast Don’t want to read? Listen to the South of Seoul BlogCast which provides accessible content through the use of AI technology. We don’t have time to read each article but we do our best to make more of our content accessible. If you would like to join our Accessibility Team apply to volunteer with South of Seoul. Please note that the pronunciation of some Korean words may be inaccurate due to AI technology’s limitations. Prerequisites for printing your vaccination certificate via the KDCA website The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) allows residents to access their vaccination certificates directly from their website. Through the KDCA website you can view and print the Korean version as well as the English version of your certificate. HOWEVER, in order to access your certificate, there are a two requirements. NOTE: Accessing anything on Korean websites can be a long, confusing, and frustrating process. Getting to your English COVID vaccination certificate on the KDCA website will require some time and patience. Bare with me. I have done my best to lay out each instruction step by step with screenshots for the entire process. If you don’t want to bother with the roller coaster of Korea’s online platform, skip to the bottom of this blog to see another option for obtaining your English COVID vaccination certificate. 1. You must have a Korean phone number associated with your ARC number These days, in Korea, your alien registration card (ARC) number is attached to EVERYTHING, including your Korean phone plan. If your ARC number is not associated with a contracted Korean phone number, accessing anything online can be difficult. Korea’s online security requires a ton of verifications before allowing access to sensitive personal information. So, if you have a phone that is under someone else’s ARC number, then you will not be able to access your certificate through the KDCA’s website. 2. You must have an accredited certificate of authentication aka a digital certificate of authentication aka official ID certificate (공인닝증서 [gong in injeung seo]) This certificate is referred to by many names in English. I will refer to it as a digital certificate. Most folks, like myself, acquire a digital certificate of authentication through their mobile banking app or bank website. Digital certificates via a banking app/site are free, take only a couple of minutes to set up, and must be renewed every year. Some people purchase digital certificates for a small fee. You can learn how to set up a digital certificate here. This digital certificate can be used across different websites that deal with sensitive personal information, like the KDCA website. You will need to make sure to copy and save your digital certificate on the device you wish to use to access the KDCA website. You can copy and save the digital certificate to multiple devices (i.e. cell phone, desktop, USB). If don’t have a digital certificate saved to the device you want to use for the KDCA website, you won’t have access to your vaccination certificate. How to access the English version of your vaccination certificate Once you have a Korean phone number associated with your ARC number and a digital certificate set up, you can start the process for printing your vaccination certificate in English. Just a little warning, this process may get confusing. Take your time, read the instructions below carefully, and you will have your English vaccination certificate in no time. Step 1: Register for an account on the KDCA Website When you click into the website link, you will see a popup screen. Close this screen. In the top right-hand corner of the screen, you will see a black button that reads 회원가입. Click this button (see image below). Scroll down a bit. Check the boxes labeled 위 이용약관에 동의합니다 and 동의합니다 to accept the website’s terms and conditions for registration. Then click, the grey box at the bottom labeled 동의 as shown in the image below. Verifying your phone number On this page you have a choice between verifying via your cell phone or an i-PIN. I am not sure how the i-PIN works. I have never been able to acquire an i-PIN. However, if you have an i-PIN continue on by clicking the blue button labeled i-PIN. Otherwise, click on 휴대폰 인증 to complete a cell phone verification process. After clicking the cell phone verification button, you will get a pop up screen that looks like the image below. Select your cell phone service provider. Click the “Full Consent” check box. Then, you can either choose to verify via PASS or SMS. Choose whichever works best for you. With PASS, you will need to download the PASS app if you haven’t already done so and verify according to your PASS app instructions. For SMS verification, you will receive a text message with a numeric code to input. I find this to be the easiest option. See below for SMS verification steps. Below is what the SMS verification screen looks like. You will need to enter your name as shown on your Alien Registration Card (ARC) as well as the first 7 digits of your ARC number. Then, enter your phone number, type in the captcha code and click “Confirm.” You will receive a text message to your phone with a six digit code. Enter the code on your verification screen and click “Confirm.” Creating your user name and password After verifying your phone number, you should be redirected to the page shown below. This is where you will create your user name and password. Your user name should be between 6-10 characters. If your user name isn’t accepted, try typing it in all lower case letters. Korean sites often don’t distinguish between capital and lower case letters. Your password should be 9 or more characters long and include alphanumeric (letters and numbers) text as well as a special character. The ACCEPTABLE special characters include !@$%^&* (any other special characters will be rejected. Once you’ve created your user name and password. Re-enter your phone number and click 확인 to confirm. You successfully created an account if you see the below prompt pop up. Click “OK” and you will be redirected back to the main page of the KDCA website to log in. Now you can log into the KDCA website to access your COVID vaccination record. Step 2: Update your personal profile with your digital certificate Now that you have registered an account on the KDCA website and you are logged in, you can access your English COVID vaccination record. Just follow the instructions listed below. First, after logging in, find the button on the top right hand corner of the webpage labeled 회원정보 수정. Click it. Then, on the left hand side of the page, find and click on 회원부가정보 입력. NOTE: Remember the digital certificate (공인증서) we talked about all the way at the top of this blog? You will need that certificate for this next part. So, if you didn’t have a chance to get one set up already, here is another opportunity. Just follow the instructions on this blog post and you will be ready for the next step. Scroll down to the bottom of the KDCA page. Enter your information as shown below. You will upload your digital certificate on the last row of this table where it says 인증서 등록 . Uploading your digital certificate When you click on 인증서 등록, you will get a pop up screen that looks like the image below. You may need to click on a few buttons before you find it, but search for your digital certificate and enter the password associated with your digital certificate. I found my digital certificate listed under the button labeled 하드디스크 (hard disk). Click 확인 when you have finished entering your credentials. If the digital certificate row reads 등록되었습니다, then you can click 회원정보 수정 at the bottom of the page to save your information. You will know it saved correctly if you see the pop up message below. Click OK. Step 3: Access your English COVID vaccination certificate Phew! Are you still with me? If you are, I am proud of you for making it this far. Korea’s online systems require a lot of verifications to ensure that your information remains secure from hackers. It can get super frustrating to navigate this system, but once you get set up, it gets easier. Okay, so you should now be back to the main KDCA page. On the right hand side of the page, you will see a button panel (see image below). Click the top button on the panel labeled 예방접종증명서 신청. Click on 영문 for the English version of your COVID vaccination certificate. Then, click the button next to your name labeled 증명서 신청. Fill out the form with your information as shown below. The digital certificate pop up window will appear. Find your digital certificate. Enter your digital certificate password. Then, click 확인 to confirm. The below message means you are good to go. Click OK. Step 4 (Hallelujah!): Printing your English COVID vaccination certificate Select the dates from when you received your first shot to when you received your second shot. Then, click 검색. Your vaccination certificate will appear in the table below. Click 문서출력. A pop up window will appear with instructions on how to print your COVID vaccination certificate. After skimming through the instructions, close out of the instructions window to view your English COVID vaccination record. Click on the printer button on the top right corner of the page and there you have it! Congratulations if you made it through this crazy long blog on how to print your English COVID vaccination certificate. You are a trooper! If you went through all of these instructions and still weren’t able to get access to your vaccination certificate, there is another way. What if I can’t (or don’t want to) access my COVID vaccination record online? If you couldn’t access your COVID vaccination online after going through the entire process above, you have two other options for getting a COVID vaccination certificate appropriate for travel outside the country. Visit your local health (보건소) or community center (주민센터) Not all health centers and community centers offer this service, so it would be wise to call ahead to double check if yours does. However, some local health centers (보건소) or community centers (주민센터 aka 동사무소) will print an English COVID vaccination certificate for you if you visit in person. Just copy and paste these names (보건소 or 주민센 터 or 동사무소) into Naver or Kakao maps to find a location near you. Make sure you bring your Alien Registration Card (ARC) with you when you visit. Get your Korean certificate apostilled On a call with a 1339 COVID call center representative, I was informed that you can get your Korean COVID vaccination certificate apostilled to verify it for when you travel outside the country. Before starting this process, always check the rules and policies for the country you are traveling to. Make sure that an apostilled copy...

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Let’s talk about how to get ‘better’ service in Korea. I put ‘better’ in quotes because service looks different in different countries since each culture has its own expectations. Such differences may feel like ‘bad service’ since they don’t meet our own social expectations. Let’s look at what this might mean. About My Life In Korea I am a US military spouse living in Korea with my family. I have a few kids who are homeschooled and we spend a great exploring Korea off base. I’m also half Korean but do not speak Korean. Living in Korea brings many challenges. It can feel exhausting trying to balance family, teaching my kids, developing my own interests, and managing the culture shock. Reflecting on Bad Service I started thinking about this and asked myself, “Do we get the service we deserve?” and thought of the following experience: The other day I walked into a shop to find a present for a friend’s upcoming birthday. I was talking a mile a minute when I realized that I wasn’t making sense to them, I hesitated. That quick pause helped me to see I was acting like they should stop everything they were doing and serve me immediately. My behavior was rude and entitled. On top of that, I was forcing them to read my mind. If I didn’t change my approach I was going to leave without a solution for a birthday present. I took a deep breath and willed myself to start over. This time focusing on being aware that they did not know all the details I know. And what do you know? Their expression and attitudes towards me changed. The funny thing is, this happened in Texas. The “other day” was several years ago and the language barrier was over our different accents rather than different languages. When I look back, I think what saved me that day was that I was willing to think about what I was doing and adapt so we both got what we wanted. That experience stayed with me and taught me a couple of things that help me in Korea. Let’s take a look at how empathizing with my own past experiences helps me get better service in South Korea. A Case Study in ‘Bad Service’ I recently had a conversation with a friend about a restaurant we both visited. We had two different experiences with the same waiter. She decided the poor service she received there was because the waitress was racist and was discriminating against her. We decided to go to lunch together and test out our theory about what was happening. At lunch, I noticed there were other people of similar backgrounds as my friend. The waitress didn’t seem to have an issue with any of them. Was it because we were women and there was a male-female cultural difference at play? No. There were other women in the restaurant being served by the same waitress. It turns out the problem was simple. My friend had the habit of speaking too quickly and not letting the waitress digest what she said. When the waitress didn’t respond immediately my friend rolled her eyes and it created tension between her and the waitress. Once we figured out what the real deal was, my friend reported that her experience at that restaurant improved. Of course, my friend was quick to point out that she was not the only one to annoy the waitress that day. My fault nowadays as a customer is being indecisive. I own that, and I know it is something I need to work on. I haven’t figured out a fail-safe solution for that, but here is what I do know will work to improve your customer experience while in Korea; Slow down because not everyone can understand what you are saying at the speed you are saying it. Your English is not everyone else’s English. Try more specific words or change your phrases a little. For example, “That’s fine” could be said as “Yes.” Use straightforward words that an ESL speaker would find clear and easy to understand. Help people understand what you want by introducing a basic idea and then build on that by asking them to help you with the specific detail or service you want. Since servers here have often never lived in other countries, they are doing their best but might need help fully understanding what you are asking for or what you are expecting from them. Get better service by researching what you want. Avoid impulsively buying something that you don’t know much about. Avoid putting strangers on the spot by making them guess what is “perfect” for you.   Fast forward to Living in Korea. The problem and the solution I experienced in Texas seems to work here as well. At first look, I can tell that we all come from diverse backgrounds and cultures. We each have different ideas of what service is supposed to look like. What we seem to forget is that we expect to be served a certain way without understanding the impact of our own behavior as customers and how it relates to the local culture. Looking a little more closely we can see there is a lot more going on than a simple confusion over accents. They are as stressed and confused as we are. Let’s imagine for a moment that you want to buy a car. You have done your research and you know the make and model you want to buy. Or actually, maybe you are buying on a whim and wander into the nearest dealership. Regardless you are ready to buy. You end up buying a car, convinced it is perfect for your needs. A week later you take a corner too fast and the wheels spin out uncontrollably, leading you to crash into a pole. You angrily take yourself back to the dealership demanding a refund. But they refuse. You are not happy with their response. You get in their face. You yell at them and tell them if they don’t make it right you are going to leave bad reviews for them. Do you think this business is going to refund the car you destroyed through your own mishandling? In short, if the customer is the reason a product is damaged, it is not the business’s responsibility to replace or refund it. It seems obvious when talking about cars but it can be less clear when using new products you’ve never used. You might think you used it correctly, but to those who know how to use it – you clearly didn’t. This is a common part of culture shock for all of us. Granted some places have a policy that out of goodwill they will replace or refund something with no questions ask. Sometimes a membership or an insurance fee is required to guarantee that kind of service for their customer. However, it should not be expected across the board. When we don’t get think we get the response we came for, we need to stop and realize sometimes things just aren’t how we were used to. In this case, it means acknowledging what we did to cause a product to fail and eating our humble pie. And living away from our hometowns has given me plenty of opportunities to have a piece of that pie! On the other hand, we all have had a time when a product or service has disappointed us. If you are not happy with an item and it is in good condition-you might have some options. Generally, it is always best to check before buying to see what the policy is. However, if the business misconstrued what the product can do or sold you a faulty product knowingly, you have every right to ask for a refund or exchange. All things considered, if you are shopping with a reputable and legitimate business here is what you should say for the best results; Useful Phrases for Getting an Exchange or Refund. Observe the type of customers that frequent the type of establishment you are visiting. You can tell a lot about what is normal or not normal service by taking the time to note this detail. Understand you are not always the type of customer a Korean business builds their customer culture around. Many businesses in Pyeongtaek are not prepared to provide customer service for foreigners. At this businesses, you will have to follow local customs. Do your best to negotiate politely. You will not always get what you came for. Know when it is time to walk away. Remember that pointing out people’s failures usually gets you less and not more here. Approach things from the standpoint that you need help and not that you are blaming them. This gives them more ways to provide a quality experience. It is okay to be firm in your request but also respect the place of business’s established policy. It is unreasonable to ask for things beyond the scope of a person’s responsibilities. A store manager may be unable to give you what you want because it must answer to the policy of a Corporation. Korea4Expats wrote an article about locating your local Korea Consumer Agency or other consumer organizations for consumer counseling. You will need receipts and contracts to help your case go smoothly.   If you are unhappy with your service, make sure the establishment is aware of the problem. Be prepared to offer helpful suggestions in a non-aggressive manner. Sometimes the back end of the operation is not aware of what the front end service looks like. Remember you are a representative of the country and the communities you came from. Every time you explode, you are in essence ‘losing face’ for everything you represent. I have watched customers who felt entitled to act like a bully get the deal they wanted. It leaves the impression that the fastest way to get what you want is to act aggressively. Over time it changes the attitudes and atmosphere towards the next bewildered customer. The reality is if I expect a quality business to give me good products and services, then they should get a high-quality customer who knows how to behave. How you conduct yourself affects us all Christi ClineChristi Cline holds a Bachelor’s in Business Administration and a Korean American. She proudly served in the US Marines and worked as a police officer before moving into social media and online content. As a Cultural Liason and Content Creator with South of Seoul, Ms. Cline reported on Pyeongtaek news and helped to coordinate youth camps with the Pyeongtaek Youth Center. After leaving her volunteer position with South of Seoul, Christi moved to the United States and joined a global communications technology company.

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Sometimes a product you purchased doesn’t work out the way you want it to. Instead of getting frustrated, try some of these phrases to help you get an exchange or refund. Christi ClineChristi Cline holds a Bachelor’s in Business Administration and a Korean American. She proudly served in the US Marines and worked as a police officer before moving into social media and online content. As a Cultural Liason and Content Creator with South of Seoul, Ms. Cline reported on Pyeongtaek news and helped to coordinate youth camps with the Pyeongtaek Youth Center. After leaving her volunteer position with South of Seoul, Christi moved to the United States and joined a global communications technology company.

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In Korea one of the coolest things is how easy it is to charter a bus and do a group tour. It’s crazy affordable. Usually between 300-550,000 won depending on the size of your bus (24 or 44 people) and where you are going. The one hurdle that foreigners will have when booking a bus is communicating easily with the driver.  Since we are all about empowering everyone to get out and enjoy all that Korea has to offer, here is a set of phrases to help you feel confident in booking a tour for your friends and co-workers and seeing the country on your own terms. (Some of these are specific for Pyeongtaek). BOARDING THE BUS DURING TRAVEL UPON ARRIVAL (You can save these images and send in an SMS message.) OTHER

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Always remember, if you don’t feel comfortable speaking, you can simply show the server your phone and point the to the useful phrases for pet owners that you need. You can also save these images to your phone for emergencies. Although ideally we recommend visiting a vet with strong English skills, we also understand that this is often impossible. We also understand that even when a vet speaks English or an expat speaks Korean, misunderstandings still occur. We have compiled this list to empower pet owners to do their best for their fur babies in a stressful situation. Korean Translation provided by Pyeongtaek Korean Tutors. One-on-one Korean language tutoring with a Certified Korean as a Foreign Language teacher.               Looking for English-Speaking Vets in Pyeongtaek Regardless if you choose an English-speaking vet or not, we recommend holding onto this list of useful phrases for pet owners. Also, if you are new to the area and have not chosen a veterinarian yet, make sure to check out our blog with English-speaking animal clinics and hospitals in Pyeongtaek. In case of emergencies, it is always vital to keep a list of locations you can have on hand. Be sure to check out our blog about 24-hour emergency animal hospitals with tips to help you prepare for emergencies with your pet. Our content partners, KimchiRednecks, also wrote a blog about Best Friends Vet near Osan Air Base. As parents to three older shih tzus, the KimchiRednecks often provide content and videos on their channel with their pups. Fun Options for A Day Out With Your Dog Ready to take your dog out for the day? Check out this blog for fun options near Osan Air Base. Also, if you are near Camp Humphreys, check out these options. Join the Everything Paws Korea Facebook Group Looking for a place where pet owners living in Korea can ask questions and share ideas? Everything Paws Korea has information on training, recipes, health tips and DIY. In addition, there are post links to articles and such relating to our pets. However, please keep in mind, information in this group should never replace the advice of a qualified veterinarian. Volunteer with South of Seoul Interested in working with a fun team of talented volunteers? The South of Seoul volunteer team is always looking for other like-minded folks to research information, compile blogs, and edit content.

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Important Western Ingredients and their Hangul doppelgangers. 

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Korean daycare staff expects IMMEDIATE responses to any text information. It’s a Korean cultural standard to respond within 10 minutes to messages involving children. At least take the time to explain your situation. South of Seoul created a list of common responses parents can use when communicating with schools: English Korean (name) will be late to school(00:00). (name) will be late to school(00:00). (name) will be late to school(00:00). (name)은 학교에 늦을 거예요(00:00). (name) will not go to school today. (name)은 오늘 학교에 가지 않을 거예요. I will come at (time) to pick-up (name). 저는 (name)를 일찍(00:00) 데리고 갈 것입니다. What time does school begin today? 오늘 학교는 몇 시에 시작합니까? What time does school get out today? 오늘 학교는 몇 시에 끝나나요? (name) is sick. (name)은 아파요. (name) will go to the hospital today. (name)은 오늘 병원에 갈 거예요. (name) is allergic to (Food name). (name)은 (food name)에 알레르기가 있습니다. What school supplies does (need) tomorrow? (name)이 내일 학교에서 필요한 준비물은 무엇입니까? Does (name) have homework today (name)은 오늘 숙제가 있나요? Yes, I understand. 네, 이해했습니다. Yes, that’s ok. / Yes, that’s fine. 예, 괜찮아요.

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Always remember, if you don’t feel comfortable speaking, you can simply show the server your phone and point the the phrase you need. 

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