My Korean husband is posted overseas and won't come back for the divorce — how do I even serve him from Korea?

A Korean divorce does not need him in the room. His absence changes how documents reach him and adds time; it does not add a veto. And because he agrees in substance, there are two routes that avoid a contested trial entirely — one of which he can complete at a Korean consulate in the US without "dealing with Korean paperwork" beyond a single appointment. On the visa: living apart because of an overseas posting is not marital breakdown in immigration's eyes, and you are not "in trouble" for a situation you have not yet acted on.

Can you divorce in Korea, and under which law

Jurisdiction under Article 56 of the Act on Private International Law (국제사법, gukje sabeop) is satisfied by your habitual residence in Korea and his Korean nationality. Korean law applies under Article 66. His being in the US does not remove the case from Korea.

Which route: agreement, mediation, litigation

Divorce by agreement (협의이혼, hyeobui ihon) normally requires both spouses to appear at the family court. There is a consular version for a Korean national abroad: he applies at the Korean consulate with jurisdiction over his US address, the application is forwarded to the Seoul Family Court, the cooling-off period (숙려기간, sungnyeo gigan) runs, and the confirmation is completed with you appearing in Korea and him at the consulate. It requires his cooperation at two points and correct paperwork on both ends; when it works, it is the least adversarial route. The exact procedure should be confirmed with the Seoul Family Court and the consulate before starting.

Mediation (조정, jojeong) is the second route. You file; he consents through a Korean lawyer under a power of attorney (위임장, wiimjang), notarized and apostilled in the US; the court records the agreed divorce in a mediation record (조정조서, jojeong joseo) with the force of a judgment. He never has to attend. For a passive but non-hostile spouse, this is often the practical choice, because his only task is signing one document.

Judicial divorce (재판상 이혼, jaepansang ihon) is the fallback if "won't fight it" turns out to mean "won't do anything." Two years' separation abroad, with the marriage functionally over, is argued under the catch-all ground in Article 840 of the Civil Act.

Children, property and support

You did not mention children. Property division (재산분할, jaesan bunhal) covers assets built during six years of marriage in either name, including whatever he has accumulated in the US; recording an agreed division in the mediation record makes it enforceable in Korea, while enforcing against US assets is a separate step under US law.

Your spouse is abroad: service and timing

If the case is contested or he does not respond through counsel, the court must serve him in the US. Korea and the US are both parties to the Hague Service Convention, and a Korean national abroad may also be served through the Korean consulate. Either way, count on several months for service alone, and more if the address is wrong. That is where "takes forever" comes from — and it is precisely what the consent routes avoid. A spouse who consents through a lawyer is deemed served the moment his lawyer files.

What this means for your stay in Korea

A married F-6 holder whose spouse is posted abroad is in status; spouses live apart for work all the time. The point at which the Immigration Office has something to consider is the divorce itself. Immigration rules treat differently a foreign spouse whose marriage ended through the Korean spouse's fault (귀책사유, gwichaek sayu), a parent raising a Korean child, and other situations; an agreed divorce without findings of fault sits differently from a judgment that records fault. What that means for you is decided by the Immigration Office, not the court, and it is worth understanding before you choose the route, because the choice of route shapes the document. MEGA X handles the divorce; where the outcome affects your stay, we coordinate with an immigration specialist as part of the case.

Practical insight

The route decision is the whole case here. Couples who choose the consular agreement route without checking the paperwork on the US side lose months to a rejected application. Couples who choose mediation get his signature on a power of attorney while he is still saying "I won't fight it," and finish in a few months. The mistake is waiting for him to become less passive; get the signature while he is agreeable. And the second, quieter mistake: neither of you telling the other government. A Korean divorce should be reported to the Australian side by you, and he should understand what a Korean divorce means for any later US proceeding.

If you send us his address and a sentence on what he has actually agreed to, we can tell you which route fits — by text consultation or at +82-2-522-3959.

— MEGA X Law Firm Korea, International Family Law Team