Can you register your ARC address at a goshiwon?

Yes. A goshiwon is a valid residence address for the ARC and immigration accepts it routinely — a large share of newly arrived students register from one.

What immigration wants is proof that you live where you say you live. For a goshiwon that is one of:

1. 거주사실 확인서 — a residence confirmation, written and stamped by the operator. This is the standard document and every goshiwon knows what it is.
2. A short lease or occupancy agreement if the building issues one.
3. In some cases a receipt showing your name, the room number and the period paid, plus the building's business registration number.

Ask for it on the day you move in, while you are standing there paying. Getting it later means catching the operator on a day they happen to be in, which for a small building can take a week — and that week matters if your ARC appointment is coming up.

Practical points:

- The address you register includes the room number. Write it exactly as the operator writes it.
- Keep a photo of the document. You will be asked for the address again at the bank, and possibly for the phone contract.
- When you move out of the goshiwon into a one-room, you must report the address change within 14 days. You can do that at the local community centre (주민센터) rather than immigration, which is much faster.
- Your national health insurance bills and any official letters go to the registered address. Students who move and do not update it discover months of arrears at extension time.

One thing that occasionally comes up: a very small number of operators are reluctant to issue the confirmation, usually because the building's paperwork is not in order. If that happens, that is information about the building. Ask before you pay whether they will issue a 거주사실 확인서 for immigration — a normal operator says yes immediately, and it takes the question off the table.