DNA Testing

For Korean adoptees, genetic testing is often viewed as the final frontier of truth—especially when paperwork has been falsified, altered, or destroyed. However, navigating DNA testing in South Korea involves navigating complex bureaucratic realities, siloed databases, and cultural friction.

Under the Act on the Protection and Support of Missing Children, an adoptee can report directly to the police as an individual searching for biological parents or family.

The NCRC (National Center for the Rights of the Child) Adoption Registry and the Korean National Police Agency (KNPA) Missing Persons DNA Database operate under different ministries, different statutory authorities, and different legal mandates.