Living in Korea
This page is machine translated from Ieumi's guide written in Korean. If the meaning is confusing, please look at the Korean original text. View original text (Korean)
Living in Korea
- Child's nationality selection (자녀 국적선택)
Children with multiple nationalities must select their nationality before turning 22 years old. - Renunciation of Foreign Nationality or Pledge Not to Exercise Foreign Nationality (외국국적불행사 서약)
You must complete this within 1 year after acquiring Korean nationality. - Re-entry permit exemption — check before a long trip abroad
If you return within 1 year of departure (2 years for F-5 permanent residents), no re-entry permit is needed. Stay out longer and you lose your status — and there is no way to fix it from abroad. If you plan to stay abroad beyond the exemption period, get re-entry permission before you leave. - Extension of period of stay
You must apply for an extension before your period of stay expires. From the day after expiry you are staying illegally. - Birth registration
You must register a birth within 1 month. Until it is registered the child has no resident registration number, so no child benefits can be claimed. - Parental benefit and child allowance — apply within 60 days to get back pay
Apply within 60 days including the birth date and payments start from the birth month. Miss it and payments start only from the month you apply — the earlier months are gone for good. - Child born in Korea with foreign nationality — getting their status of stay
If both parents are foreign nationals, a child born in Korea must be granted a status of stay — apply within 90 days of birth. - Returning Your Residence Card (외국인등록증)
Once you acquire Korean nationality, you must return your alien registration card — within 30 days of completing your resident registration. - Report of change of residence
If you move, you must report your new address. - Alien registration
If you will stay more than 90 days, you must register as a foreign resident within 90 days of entry. The registration card unlocks almost everything — banking, hospitals, phone contracts. - Driver's license — with an International Driving Permit, you may drive for 1 year from your entry date
With an International Driving Permit (or a license from a country whose licenses Korea mutually recognizes), you may drive for 1 year from your entry date. A license from any other country does not, on its own, let you drive. To keep driving after that, you must convert it to a Korean license. - If your alien registration details change — report within 15 days
If your name, gender, date of birth, or nationality changes, or your affiliated organization, occupation, or income changes, you must report it within 15 days. A late report incurs a fine, which grows the longer you delay. - Changing jobs — get a workplace change permit first (some report within 15 days)
If you work on a work visa and want to change jobs, you must get a workplace change permit from immigration before you move. Only people from Professor (E-1) to Special Activities (E-7) who meet requirements set by the Ministry of Justice may instead report within 15 days after the change. - First Meeting voucher — within 2 years of birth
A voucher given at birth. For children born on or after January 1, 2024, you must claim and spend it within 2 years of the birth date. - Postpartum care support (home helper)
A health worker visits your home after childbirth. You can apply from 40 days before the due date until 60 days after birth. - Report of newly created surname and origin (성·본 창설 신고)
You must report within one month of receiving the family court’s certified approval. - Got a new passport? File a change report
If your passport is reissued (new number or issue date), you must report the change within 15 days. Most people don't know this rule exists. - On your first arrival you submit an arrival card — electronically from 3 days before arrival
People who have completed foreigner registration or hold a valid K-ETA (electronic travel authorization) do not submit an arrival card. If you are coming for a long stay for the first time, you have not registered yet, so you submit one. You can submit it in advance as an e-Arrival card. - Cheongju International Airport
You come out in the order of immigration inspection → baggage claim → customs. If you are not sure where the exits are, ask the Korea Airports Corporation Customer Center (1661-2626). - Jeju International Airport
You come out in the order of immigration inspection → baggage claim → customs. If you are not sure where the exits are, ask the Korea Airports Corporation Customer Center (1661-2626). - Gimpo International Airport
You come out in the order of quarantine → immigration inspection → baggage claim → customs → animal and plant quarantine. If your bag does not come, report to that airline with your baggage tag. - Incheon International Airport — Terminals 1 and 2
You come out in the order of immigration inspection → baggage claim → customs. At immigration inspection, Koreans and foreigners stand in separate lines. - Gimhae International Airport (Busan)
You come out in the order of immigration inspection → baggage claim → customs. If you are not sure where the exits are, ask the Korea Airports Corporation Customer Center (1661-2626). - Quarantine report (Q-CODE) — depends on the countries you passed through
If you came through a priority quarantine management area set by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, everyone reports their health condition; if you came through a quarantine management area, you report only if you have symptoms like fever or cough. You can do it in advance with Q-CODE from 7 days before arrival. - Daegu International Airport
You come out in the order of immigration inspection → baggage claim → customs. If you are not sure where the exits are, ask the Korea Airports Corporation Customer Center (1661-2626). - Declaring money and goods — declare if over 10,000 US dollars
If means of payment such as foreign currency, Korean won, or checks exceed 10,000 US dollars, both Koreans and foreigners must declare it to customs. One person's duty-free limit is 800 US dollars. - Before coming on Study (D-2) or Language Training (D-4) — the Standard Admission Letter
A degree-course study visa is applied for with a 「표준입학허가서」(Standard Admission Letter) issued by the school. The school screens your ability to study and your finances, and puts the result in the letter. For language training, you submit documents showing admission or enrollment and financial documents. - Before coming under an Employment Permit (E-9) — from the Korean test to training after arrival
The way to come and work under the Employment Permit System has a set order. You pass the Korean language test (EPS-TOPIK) in your home country, sign a work contract, take pre-employment training, and then enter Korea. - Before coming as a Marriage Migrant (F-6) — invitation, Korean, income, housing
A Marriage Migrant visa is for a Korean spouse to invite. The screening looks at the Korean spouse completing the international marriage guidance program, the foreign spouse's basic Korean, and income and housing. There are exemptions depending on the country and your circumstances. - Leave meat and fruit behind — a fine if you do not declare
Livestock products such as meat, sausage, and jerky, and fresh fruit that a traveler carries in mostly cannot be brought in. If you brought some, be sure to declare it at the airport quarantine counter. - Documents you can only get in your home country — prepare before you come
Family relation, birth, and marriage certificates, degree and transcript certificates, and criminal record certificates are issued only by home-country offices. They may be used when you change your visa, bring family, send a child to school, or apply for permanent residence or naturalization. - When you bring medicine — if it contains narcotic ingredients, get approval in advance
The amount accepted as medicine for your own use is within 6 bottles or a 3-month supply by the directions. However, medicine containing narcotic ingredients needs prior handling approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety for both Koreans and foreigners. - Tuberculosis health certificate — depending on your country, you submit one if you stay over 90 days
If a citizen of a high-risk tuberculosis country applies for a visa to stay more than 90 days, they submit a tuberculosis health certificate obtained at a hospital designated by the Korean mission. - Two ways to get a visa — apply at a Korean mission, or the inviter goes first
To stay in Korea for a long time, you get a visa before you come. There are two ways: applying at the Korean embassy or consulate (Korean mission abroad) in the country where you live, or having an inviter in Korea (a company, school, spouse, and so on) first get a 「사증발급인정서」(Certificate of Visa Issuance Confirmation). - Social Integration Program (KIIP) application — where and how to start
Apply only through the Social Integration Information Network. Your stage is determined by a preliminary assessment, and you attend classes at an operating institution with jurisdiction over your place of stay. Foreign residents of Korea preparing for nationality, permanent residence and the like, and people who gained Korean nationality less than 3 years ago, may apply. - Bringing your family — it depends on your status of stay: yes or no
The Accompanying Family (F-3) status for bringing your spouse and minor children to Korea is not open to every status of stay. First check whether your status qualifies. - If your child struggles with Korean — they can first learn in a Korean language class
Students who came from abroad or whose Korean is very limited can first learn Korean and school life in a "Korean language class" inside a school, or at a school or institution the education office entrusts (commissioned type). Both count toward academic records. - When your marriage ends — what happens to your stay and naturalization
Even if you divorce or your spouse passes away, the path does not close on that day. However, it depends on circumstances, so don't decide on your own — ask first. - Renouncing Korean nationality (dual-national son, military service)
A son with dual nationality must file to renounce Korean nationality by March 31 of the year he turns 18. - Enrolling a foreign-national child in school — no notice will come
Korean-national children automatically receive an enrollment notice. Foreign-national children do not — the parent must apply to the school directly. - Family center home visits — a teacher comes to you
For marriage immigrants and multicultural families who cannot travel to a center, an instructor visits your home. Korean language, parenting, and child support services are available. Korean lessons are for marriage immigrants within 5 years of entry and children who came to Korea mid-childhood. - Health checkups — free every 2 years with health insurance
People with health insurance (employee subscribers, regional household heads, household members and dependants aged 20+) get the NHIS general health checkup free once every 2 years. Non-office workers get it every year. - Children's vaccinations — national vaccinations are free up to age 12
Children aged 12 and under get the nationally designated vaccinations free at public health centres and designated clinics. Any designated clinic nationwide is fine, regardless of where you live. - Big hospitals need a referral letter — go to a local clinic or hospital first
With health insurance, you first see a local clinic or hospital (stage 1). For a tertiary hospital such as a university hospital (stage 2), you bring a referral letter written by that doctor. - Sick at night or on a holiday — finding an open clinic or pharmacy
Find clinics and pharmacies open at night or on holidays on the E-Gen emergency medical portal (website or the "응급똑똑" app), or ask 129, 119 or 120. For children sick at night there are Moonlight Children's Hospitals (달빛어린이병원). If someone is short of breath or losing consciousness, call 119 right away. - Before you leave it to someone — check that they are a registered agency
You may submit them yourself. If you want to leave it to someone else, first check that they are an agency registered with the Ministry of Justice (a lawyer or administrative agent). - Danuri Call Center 1577-1366 — daily life, interpretation, family, 24 hours
A counseling line for marriage immigrants and multicultural families. Open 24 hours, 365 days, staffed by migrant-women counselors in many languages. - Emergencies — 112 · 119, and text them if you cannot speak
112 for crime, 119 for fire, rescue, and medical emergencies — 24 hours, and they do not ask about your immigration status. If you cannot speak, you can send a text message to 112 or 119 — write your address and what happened. - 하이코리아에서 직접 내기 — 전자민원 차례와 낸 다음
체류 민원 가운데 일부는 관서에 가지 않고 하이코리아 전자민원으로 직접 낼 수 있습니다. 온라인으로 받은 허가는 관서에 가서 받은 것과 효력이 같습니다. 다만 민원과 체류자격에 따라 전자민원이 안 되고 방문예약만 되는 것이 있으니 먼저 확인하십시오. - Questions about visa or stay — call 1345
For anything about stay, visas, or alien registration, dial 1345. Counseling is available in multiple languages. - When you can't communicate — free interpretation at 1588-5644
Get an interpreter by phone anywhere — hospital, government office, police station. 20 languages, 24 hours, free. - Legal advice 132 — Korea Legal Aid Corporation, foreigners can use it too
If you have a legal problem about money, housing, work or family, you can get free advice from the Korea Legal Aid Corporation. There is phone 132 and visit, video, online and chat consultation, and foreigners living in Korea are included. - Voice phishing — government offices do not ask for money or documents by phone
There are calls and texts pretending to be an immigration office (출입국·외국인관서), the prosecution, the police, or the Financial Supervisory Service. If they say to send money by phone, hand over a card, bankbook, or password, or tap a link and install an app, hang up and check yourself directly. - If you are experiencing violence — help does not depend on your visa
Migrant women experiencing domestic or sexual violence can get support regardless of immigration status — including those without valid status. - When a family member passes away — reporting · registration cancellation · inheritance · pension
The first thing to do is get several copies of the medical certificate. If the deceased was a Korean national, report the death within one month; if a foreigner, notify the embassy and the immigration office (출입국·외국인관서). Inheritance follows the law of the deceased's home country. - Disaster text alerts — they only come in Korean. Prepare in advance so you can read them
Disaster text alerts for earthquakes, heavy rain, heat waves, missing persons, and the like arrive on your phone automatically, but in Korean. Keep reception turned on, and also have the government app that delivers them in your language. - If you experience discrimination — Human Rights Commission 1331. The commission makes the determination
If you have been treated differently without reasonable cause because of your country of origin, ethnicity, race, or skin color, you can file a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission. This law applies to foreigners as well. - Keep your phone and SIM in your own name — do not hand them to others
In Korea, your phone number is used to confirm who you are on bank and government websites. Open your phone in your own name, and do not hand your phone or SIM in your name over for someone else to keep using. - Where to go when you're sick — 119 medical consultation, ER, interpretation
If you suddenly fall ill, 119 provides 24-hour medical consultation and tells you which ERs are open. Emergency rooms accept foreigners without discrimination. Save an interpretation number in your phone for when you can't communicate. - Throwing out rubbish — sort it, and put general waste in the official pay-as-you-throw bag
In Korea, rubbish is sorted by type before you throw it out (separate disposal). Collection days, times and bags differ by area, so check with your building management office, community service center or district office website. Large appliances such as fridges and washing machines can be picked up from your home for free. - Winter freezing — do not turn off the boiler, and leave the water running a little
Below zero, water meters, water pipes and boiler pipes can freeze and burst. Even when you are away, do not switch the boiler off — lower the temperature or use its "away" setting — and leave the hot water running a little. - Applying for naturalization permission — you submit the documents all at once
Naturalization documents are not submitted one by one; you attach them to the naturalization application form and submit them all at once. You submit them at the immigration office with jurisdiction. - You must always carry your alien registration card
Foreigners living in Korea must always carry their passport or alien registration card. If an official asks to see it, you must show it. - Mobile alien registration card — you can keep it on your phone
Registered foreigners aged 14 or older can get it. It has the same legal effect as the physical alien registration card. It can only be issued to a phone registered in your own name. - Lost or damaged registration card — reissue
If you lose your registration card, or it becomes unusable, please apply for a reissue right away. Without the registration card, identity checks at banks, hospitals and public offices are blocked. - Overseas Korean (F-4) — job restrictions changed in February 2026
With Overseas Korean (F-4) you can do most work, but simple manual labor, work that goes against good morals or public order, and jobs set by the Minister of Justice are restricted. From February 12, 2026, 10 of the restricted jobs were lifted. - The door to Permanent Residence (영주) (F-5) — Different doors open for each visa status
Permanent Residence Status (영주자격) is divided into several categories, not just one. The open door depends on your current visa status. First, check which door opens for your visa status. - When your period of stay has already passed — what to do now
If your period of stay has ended and you are still in Korea (illegal stay · overstay), do not decide on your own — ask 1345 or the immigration office for your area first. The paths and steps left to you differ by situation. - Study (D-2) and Language Training (D-4) — get permission before a part-time job
You cannot work with a study or language training status alone. Before you start work, you must get a 「체류자격 외 활동허가」(permission for activities outside your status of stay) (part-time work permission). - National Tomorrow Learning Card — up to 3 million won in training fees over 5 years
A card from the Ministry of Employment and Labor that pays for job training. For 5 years from issue, you get up to 3 million won (5 million in some cases) in training fees. Only certain foreigners are eligible.
Living in Korea — Money
- Acquisition tax — no bill arrives. Report it yourself within 60 days
If you buy a home, land, or car, you must self-report and pay within 60 days. No bill will arrive no matter how long you wait. - There is money to claim before you leave
If you don't take care of it before leaving Korea, there is money you may end up leaving behind. - Comprehensive income tax — filed in May
If you earned money outside of a company, self-report it from May 1 to 31. If 3.3% was withheld from your payment, this applies to you. - Lease contract report — automatic fixed date
After signing a housing lease, report it within 30 days. The report automatically grants the fixed date that protects your deposit. - National Pension Lump-sum Refund (국민연금 반환일시금)
You can get a refund of the pension premiums you paid when you leave the country. If you worked under Non-professional Employment (E-9) or Working Visit (H-2), you receive it regardless of nationality. For other statuses, it depends on your nationality. - Car tax — arrives twice, in June and December
If you own a car, you pay twice a year. If you fall behind, your license plate can be removed. - Property tax — you pay if you own it on June 1
If you own a home, building, or land, you pay every year in July and September. Who pays is determined by a single date: June 1. - Resident tax — foreigners pay only after 1 year of registration
This is a small tax paid once a year in August. If it hasn't been 1 year since your alien registration date, you have no obligation to pay it. - Severance pay — claimable within 3 years, even after leaving Korea
If you worked 15+ hours a week for a year or more, you are owed severance pay regardless of nationality or visa. The claim expires in 3 years — and you can claim even after returning home. - Year-end tax settlement — settled with February's salary
If you work for a company, your tax is recalculated once a year. If you overpaid, you get a refund; if you underpaid, you pay more. Foreigners do this the same way. - Lending or selling your bankbook or card is a crime
Giving others, or lending for money, the debit card or cash card tied to your account, your password, your certificate, or an OTP is forbidden by law. Words like "Lend just your account and we'll pay you" or "high-paying part-time job" can be words used to collect accounts for crime. - Where can I check whether I have unpaid amounts
There is no single place to check all your tax and insurance arrears at once. Here's a collection of where to check. - Opening a bank account — what to bring and what to ask
Pay, rent, and utility bills mostly go in and out through an account. A foreigner's new account is easily opened as a "limited account" with a daily transaction limit, so bring documents that show your purpose for the account. - A bill has arrived — how to read it and how to pay
Bills arrive only in Korean. Here's what to look for and where you can pay. - Protecting Your Jeonse (전세) and Wolse (월세) Deposit
Foreigners receive the same protection as a moving-in report (전입신고). However, you must follow the correct order. - Employment insurance — opt in when hired, or no unemployment benefits
For employment statuses such as Non-professional Employment (E-9), Working Visit (H-2), and E-7, unemployment benefits are not automatic. Coverage applies only after applying, and the application is submitted by the company to the Korea Workers' Compensation & Welfare Service. Past periods are not applied retroactively, so raise it as soon as you start the job. - Unpaid health insurance — your hospital bills and your visa are both at stake
If premiums go unpaid, your health coverage can be restricted at hospitals — and every immigration application, including stay extensions, is affected. - Register family as health insurance dependents — or each pays separately
If you have employee coverage, your spouse, parents, or children without income can be registered as dependents. If not registered, each family member pays their own regional premium. - Health insurance — from when are you enrolled?
A foreigner who stays in Korea 6 months or more also becomes a regional health insurance subscriber. Study (D-2), elementary, middle, and high school General Training (D-4-3), Non-professional Employment (E-9), Permanent Residence (F-5), and Marriage Migrant (F-6) are enrolled from the day of entry (from the registration date if alien registration is late). - When your health insurance premium is high — check the bill · file an objection
If your health insurance premium seems too high, first check how it was calculated. For foreign regional subscribers, if the calculated premium is less than the average premium, you pay the average premium. If you think the calculation is wrong, you can file an objection with the National Health Insurance Service. - Injured at work — industrial accident insurance covers everyone
Industrial accident insurance applies regardless of nationality or immigration status. It covers you even without valid status, and you can file yourself without the employer's consent. - Jeonse fraud — your right to ask before signing, and deposit return guarantee
The deposit is often your entire savings. The law gives you the right to ask about the landlord's tax arrears and prior deposits before signing, and after moving in you can take out a guarantee that returns the deposit on your behalf. Foreigners can use this too. - New bank account limited? How to lift the restrictions
New accounts for foreigners usually open as limited accounts — transfers and withdrawals capped around 1 million won a day. Submitting documents lifts the cap. - You don't need to pay this
There are things you're paying that you don't need to, or worrying about unnecessarily. Anxiety from not knowing is just as costly as unpaid arrears. - National Pension — are you someone who pays into it
Working foreigners are, in principle, enrolled in the National Pension. However, depending on visa status and nationality, some are not covered at all. - Sending money to your home country — only through registered places
When you send money abroad, use a financial company such as a bank, or a small-amount overseas remittance business registered with the government. Sending money overseas without registering (so-called hwanchigi) is forbidden by law. - Are you a resident — 183 days is the dividing line
Tax calculation differs depending on how long you've stayed in Korea. Whether you can receive deductions is decided by this. - Unpaid wages — you can claim even without valid status
Wages for work already done can be claimed even if you did not hold work authorization. The claim expires 3 years from each payday — the oldest amounts disappear first.
Naturalization papers
- Criminal Record Certificate from Home Country
Issued by your home country's police authority; apostille or consular authentication required (within 6 months of issue date). - Naturalization Application & Passport Copy
Standard form for submission to the Immigration Office (출입국·외국인관서), and copies of your passport and Alien Registration Card (외국인등록증) - Certificate of Income & Employment Certificate
Issued on NTS Hometax (홈택스) (to prove earned/business income, must meet the minimum required amount) - Proof of Financial Assets (Bank Balance Certificate)
Proof that you can support yourself. The amount differs by track: 60 million won for general naturalization, 30 million won for simplified. - Korean Spouse Family & Marriage Relation Certificate
Must be submitted when applying for naturalization by marriage (혼인귀화) (for F-6 visa holders) - Home Country Family Relationship Proof (Notarized Translation)
Official documents from your home country proving family relations, such as a Birth Certificate or Family Register Copy, along with a notarized Korean translation (한글 번역공증본) - Alien Registration Card
Your identity card in Korea. Banks, hospitals, phone companies, and government offices all verify you with it. - Birth certificate
This is a document written by the doctor or midwife who delivered the baby. You attach it to the birth report. It is issued by the very hospital where the baby was born, so you cannot get it from another hospital. - Certified copy of the court decision permitting a new surname and family origin
This is the document in which the Family Court permits you to use a new surname (성) and family origin (본). You attach it to the report creating the surname and family origin. - Certificate of matters recorded in the family relation register
These are documents that show what is written in the family relation register, such as the family relation certificate and the basic certificate. You attach them to a nationality choice report or a nationality renunciation report. - Documents proving your foreign nationality (including a copy of the foreign passport)
These are documents showing when and why you obtained the foreign nationality, together with a copy of that country's passport. You submit them with a nationality choice report or a nationality renunciation report. - Proof of giving up your foreign nationality, or a pledge not to exercise your foreign nationality
You only need to submit one of the two. It is either proof that you have actually given up the foreign nationality, or a written pledge that you will not use that foreign nationality in Korea. - Passport
Needed for almost every immigration procedure. Your stay can only be extended within your passport's validity, so if your passport expires soon, renew it before applying for an extension. - Passport photo (3.5cm × 4.5cm)
You attach 1 passport photo to the naturalization permit application. The same size is used for alien registration and Alien Registration Card reissue. If the size is wrong, the counter tells you to go and take it again. It is the item people forget most often. - Letter of recommendation (2 or more Korean nationals)
This is a document written by 2 or more Korean nationals on attached form No. 2-2. You also submit documents proving the identity of the people who recommended you. - Proof of where you live
A document proving where you currently live. What you need depends on your housing situation — it is not one document but whichever fits your case.