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Pathway

South Korea Remote Work Visa

South Korea Residency
Pathway overview

At a glance

Live temporarily in South Korea while doing approved remote work for a foreign company or your overseas business. You need at least one year in the same industry, insurance, and income meeting the rules for your age, location, and family.

Work
Age 18 or older, with overseas employment or a business allowing remote work from Korea, and one year in the same industry
2026 annual income
Under 35 and alone: KRW 78.624m in the capital region or 52.416m elsewhere; age 35+ or with family: 104.832m or 78.624m, respectively; designated areas get the lower tier
Insurance
At least KRW 100 million for treatment and repatriation

Summary

F-1-D allows qualifying foreign-company employees and overseas-business owners to live in Korea while continuing their foreign work. Korean employment and domestic profit-making are restricted, and income thresholds changed on June 30, 2026 to vary by age and intended region of residence.

The income requirement depends on your age, where you will live, and whether family members join you. This is temporary permission for overseas remote work, not a permit to take a Korean job.

Could this pathway work for you?

Eligibility

Your work and experience

You must be at least 18, employed by a company outside Korea or operating an overseas business, and able and permitted to work remotely from Korea. You need at least one year in the same industry; the mission handling the application may ask for one year with the current company.

Income for your circumstances

The rules changed on June 30, 2026. The thresholds below use 2025 Korean gross national income, or GNI, per person of KRW 52,416,000. GNI is the official income figure used to calculate the requirement.

Applicant Seoul capital region Outside the capital region or a designated population-decline area
Age 18–34 KRW 78,624,000 a year (1.5 × GNI) KRW 52,416,000 a year (1 × GNI)
Age 35 or older KRW 104,832,000 a year (2 × GNI) KRW 78,624,000 a year (1.5 × GNI)

If a spouse or minor child applies with you, the family threshold applies regardless of age: 2 × GNI in the capital region or 1.5 × GNI outside it. The GNI amount changes annually, so use the figure in force when you apply.

Provide the employment, salary, tax, payslip, and bank records your mission accepts. If using a lower regional threshold, expect to prove accommodation there and actually meet the location condition.

Insurance, background, and family

You need individual medical insurance covering at least KRW 100 million for treatment and repatriation—the cost of returning you home when necessary—during the stay.

Current checklists may require criminal records from countries where you lived for at least one year in the previous five years. Check required translations, apostilles or consular certification, and document expiry dates.

A spouse and minor children can apply separately to accompany you. Their relationship records usually need official certification. They should not assume family permission allows work.

Planning a workation in South Korea
  1. Confirm your overseas work Document the job or business, remote-work permission, and experience.
  2. Check the right income threshold Use your age, actual Korean location, and whether family will accompany you.
  3. Apply with income and insurance evidence Include the required background and any family documents.

Income figures change annually. The permission covers approved foreign work, not a local Korean job.

What This Route Allows

You can live in South Korea while continuing the approved foreign work. Current mission guidance describes one year initially, with one-year extensions up to a current total of three years.

Some visitors holding B-1, B-2, or C-3 status may be allowed to change to F-1-D inside Korea. The local immigration office decides that process; do not assume visitor entry guarantees a change. Applicants abroad normally use the Korean mission serving their place of residence.

What This Route Is Not

This is not permission for Korean employment or restricted profit-making activity in Korea. A Korean employer, locally provided services, or a Korean business activity may require another status even if the work is online.

Savings do not replace the income requirement. Nor is any online income enough without the required foreign employment or overseas-business arrangement and work history.

F-1-D does not guarantee permanent residence or citizenship. Any later F-2, F-5, or other status needs its own eligibility assessment.

Next Steps

  1. Document the overseas job or business, remote-work permission, and at least one year of relevant experience.
  2. Decide where you will actually live and calculate the age, location, and family income requirement.
  3. Gather accepted income records and arrange insurance for the full stay.
  4. Obtain criminal and family records in time for certification and translation, while keeping within their validity periods.
  5. Confirm the final checklist with the responsible Korean mission or, for an allowed change inside Korea, the local immigration office or helpline at 1345.

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Sources