Court denies request to commute to alternative military service
Published: 06 Apr. 2026, 16:55
Updated: 06 Apr. 2026, 18:29
![Seoul Administrative Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul. [YONHAP]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2026/04/06/fa63dcca-1350-44ff-8c30-f9a6e9e857e7.jpg)
Seoul Administrative Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul. [YONHAP]
A court denied a request by a man seeking to commute from home to his alternative service.
The Seoul Administrative Court recently dismissed a lawsuit filed against the commissioner of the Military Manpower Administration and the justice minister in February, according to legal sources on Monday, procedurally terminating the case without a hearing on the merits.
The lawsuit sought to overturn a previous decision that denied those serving in alternative military service the right to commute from home, similar to full-time reserve service members.
The plaintiff has been serving alternative service at Hwaseong Vocational Training Prison since October 2023. His partner gave birth to a daughter in September 2024.
He then submitted an application in May 2025 to the Minister of Justice and others, asking to commute to alternative service so the plaintiff could serve and take care of the daughter using the rules applied to members in the full-time reserve service.
The plaintiff based the request on Article 18, paragraph 1 of the Military Service Act on active duty service and Article 23, paragraph 5 on full-time reserve service, which allows service members to live outside military units with permission from the defense minister.
Full-time reserve service in Korea refers to those who undertake mandatory military service by commuting from home to support regional defense and homeland affairs, as opposed to living on base for the duration of the service.
![Korean Army soldiers train at a training ground in Incheon on April 2. [YONHAP]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2026/04/06/37cdcde1-2b48-4161-951d-e9119c4d31cd.jpg)
Korean Army soldiers train at a training ground in Incheon on April 2. [YONHAP]
The law on alternative service says that matters not provided in the Act on Assignment to and Performance of Alternative Service are governed by the Military Service Act. The request was initially not accepted by the justice minister, citing the lack of regulation exceptions that allow alternative service personnel to commute from places other than the camp to which they were assigned.
The plaintiff then filed suit, arguing that the system discriminates against alternative service personnel compared to those in active duty service and supplementary service and therefore violates Article 11 of the Constitution, which guarantees equality.
The court sided with the Justice Ministry, finding that the Alternative Service Act contains no exception to camp-based service and that the ministry has no discretion to allow commuting outside the bounds of the law.
It also ruled that the Alternative Service Act cannot be said to violate the principle against excessive restrictions, infringe on basic rights or run afoul of the Constitution, including the principle guaranteeing family life.
“The defendants’ reply cannot be viewed as a disposition subject to appeal litigation, so this lawsuit seeking its cancellation is unlawful,” the court said.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KIM BO-REUM [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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