South Korea Visa Application Guide

As of August 5, 2020

Starting July 1, 2020, the South Korean Embassy in Manila will no longer issue visa sticker to be attached to one’s passport.  The visa sticker is replaced by a Visa Grant Notice which one can download from the website www. visa.go. kr.  Successful applicants will receive an email on how they can download and print the Visa Grant Notice.

The Visa Grant Notice contains the following information: personal details including name, date of birth, and passport number, as well as visa details including visa issuance number, status of stay, period of stay, number of allowed entries, date of issue, validity of visa, and issuing authority.

All Filipinos seeking to enter South Korea are required to present the Visa Grant Notice at immigration counters.

Visa Applications for South Korean Tourist Visa must be coursed through accredited travel agencies and not directly with the embassy.  Visa is still free for 59 days or less but travel agencies will charge for their services.  Contact your favorite travel agents for their visa services or email manila@j8travelservices.com for information.

Visa Requirements for South Korean Visa remains the same as follows:

IF EMPLOYED

1. Application Form – your travel agent can provide you the form
2. 1 piece passport size colored picture – white background, neutral face
3. Original passport (should be valid for more than 6 months) – required even if the embassy no longer provides for visa sticker
4. Photocopy of passport bio-page – the page with your picture and personal details
5. Original and photocopy of valid visa/s and arrival stamps to OECD member countries for the past 5 years (if available)
6. Original Certificate of Employment – must include applicant’s position, date hired, compensation, office address, HR landline number/cellphone number is not allowed and HR e-mail address
7. Original Personal Bank Certificate – must include account type, current balance, account opening date and ADB
8. Bank Statement – original or certified true copy of bank statements/passbook for the last 3 months
9. Photocopy of ITR (Income Tax Return) or Form 2316 – frequent travelers who have traveled as tourist to OECD member countries (excluding Japan) within 5 years are exempted from submitting ITR.
10. Copy of PRC Card or IBP Card (if any)

IF SELF-EMPLOYED

1. Application Form – your travel agent can provide you the form
2. 1 piece passport size colored picture – white background, neutral face
3. Original passport (should be valid for more than 6 months) – required even if the embassy no longer provides for visa sticker
4. Photocopy of passport bio-page – the page with your picture and personal details
5. Original and photocopy of valid visa/s and arrival stamps to OECD member countries for the past 5 years (if available)
6. Photocopy of DTI or SEC
7. Photocopy of Business Permit / Mayor’s Permit
8. Original Personal Bank Certificate – must include account type, current balance, account opening date and ADB
9. Bank Statement – original or certified true copy of bank statements/passbook for the last 3 months
10. Photocopy of ITR (Income Tax Return) or Form 2316 – frequent travelers who have traveled as tourist to OECD member countries (excluding Japan) within 5 years are exempted from submitting ITR.
11. Copy of PRC Card or IBP Card (if any)

IF STUDENT

1. Application Form – your travel agent can provide you the form
2. 1 piece passport size colored picture – white background, neutral face
3. Original passport (should be valid for more than 6 months) – required even if the embassy no longer provides for visa sticker
4. Photocopy of passport bio-page – the page with your picture and personal details
5. Original and photocopy of valid visa/s and arrival stamps to OECD member countries for the past 5 years (if available)
6. Original School Certificate of enrollment signed by the registrar
7. Original School ID
8. Original and photo copy of PSA birth certificate
9. Parent’s Documents

• • if parent is employed, Original Certificate of Employment – must include applicant’s position, date hired, compensation, office address, HR landline number/cellphone number is not allowed and HR e-mail address.
  • if parent is self-employed, copy of DTI/SEC, Business Permit, ITR or Form 2316
  • Original Personal Bank Certificate – must include account type, current balance, account opening date and ADB
  • Bank Statement – original or certified true copy of bank statements/passbook for the last 3 months
  • PSA Marriage Certificate
  • frequent travelers who have traveled as tourist to OECD member countries (excluding Japan) within 5 years are exempted from submitting ITR.
  • If parents already have a valid visa, attach photocopy of parents’ valid visa. If not travelling together with parents, attach photocopy of passport or valid ID of parents.
  • Affidavit of Support

TAKE NOTE

1. The embassy is experiencing high volume of visa applications.  Processing time may take up to 30-45 days.
2. Apply for a visa not earlier than 3 months prior to flight. Validity of visa is only 3 months from the issue date. Do not apply more than 3 months prior to the date of travel.
3. For family applications, documents for proof of relationship is a must. (eg. Marriage Contact, Birth Certificate)
4. Family applications should be filed together at the same time.
5. Old passports with previous travels within the last 5 years should be submitted together with the latest passport when applying for visa.
6. Apply for visa prior to purchasing your airline tickets since visa issuance is subject for approval of the consul in charge.

LASTLY, your travel agent will evaluate your documents prior to submission to the embassy.  They should make at the very least, a good assessment of your documents. For visa assistance, email manila@j8travelservices.com for information.

As of January 26, 2015

South Korea is a popular destination among Filipinos. However, a prior visa is needed before one is allowed entry to mainland South Korea. On the other hand, no visa is needed if one is only visiting Jeju Island.

Many say that it’s not easy to get South Korean Tourist Visa because of the strict requirements the Korean Embassy imposes. Perhaps. On the other hand, if the applicant possesses all the requirements to support the visa application, I think, there will be no problem.

I personally have secured three (3) South Korean Tourist visas already. My first visa was a Single Entry Visa valid for 59 Days. The second visa was a Multiple Entry Visa valid for 1 year with a maximum of 30 days stay per entry. And my current South Korean Visa is a 5-Year Multiple Entry Visa with a maximum of 30 days per entry.

In all instances I applied for a Tourist Visa, I only submitted these basic requirements:

1. Valid Original passport and a photocopy of the bio page
2. Original Bank Certification
3. BIR documents
4. Employment documents
5. Ticket Reservation
6. Hotel Reservation
7. Photo copy of other visas in the passport
8. Duly accomplished application form with attached ID picture

Let’s discuss the requirements one by one.

The embassy requires the presentation of the applicants’ original and valid passport. Hence, ensure that your passport is valid for travel – at least 6 months prior to date of travel.

As a proof that the applicant can support his/her stay in South Korea, the Embassy requires the presentation of original bank certificate and bank statement. Both bank certificate and bank statements are required. Sometimes, the embassy also asks for the original passbook. Now here comes the big question: How much money should I have in my bank account? There is no rule on this. However, ensure that the figures appearing on the bank documents must be sufficient enough to support your stay. So make sure you can personally decipher what is meant by “sufficient money.” If the applicant is a student, submit the bank/ financial documents of your parents and a duly notarized Affidavit of Support. If the applicant is unemployed, submit proof of sources of income, say, remittances from someone living abroad or your sponsor.

BIR documents are supplementary to bank documents. If employed, submit photo copy of Tax Withheld. If self-employed, submit BIR Annual Income Tax Return, Audited Financial Statement, Business Permit and DTI/SEC Registration. If student, submit the documents of your parents.

Employment documents include Certificate of Employment and Leave of Absence. If you are a government employee, include in your application your duly approved leave form. If self-employed, the DTI/SEC document replaces this requirement. If student, submit original and photocopy of the following: enrollment form of the current semester and School ID. If un-employed, proof of remittances from someone abroad or sponsorship letter duly supported by the sponsor’s financial documents.

Ticket and Hotel reservations must only be reservations and not a paid one. Do not finalize your ticket and hotel yet. What the embassy is very particular of is the address of your accommodation in Korea and your contact number. Now comes the question, should the hotel address you indicated in the visa application form as shown in your hotel reservation be the actual hotel you will use when you get to Korea? My answer is yes. However, if you are granted a multiple entry visa and goes to Korea for the second time or so, you may use other hotels. As regards to the ticket reservation, you may change it as you wish.

Well traveled applicants get better chances of having their visa application approved. Sometimes, all the visa officer do is check your travel history as shown in your passport. The more travelled you are, the more chances you get an approved visa. If you have Japan, US, New Zealand, UK or Schengen Visa, you can be certain that you will be granted a South Korean Visa. In the application form, you are asked to list the countries you have visited in the last 5 years. To support this, photocopy your other visas and attach them to your application documents.

Lastly, applicants must properly fill-up the visa application form with passport size ID picture. Answer all items and place N/A for items that you do not have an answer. Download the visa application form here.

Applicants need not personally apply. Visa application is from 8:30 am to 11:00 am while releasing of passport is from 1:30 pm to 4:00 pm Mondays to Fridays. The Embassy of South Korea is located in 122 Upper McKinley Road, McKinley Town Center, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City. In Cebu, the South Korean Consulate is located at the 12th Floor of Chinabank Corporate Center, Lot 2, Samar Loop Cor. Road 5, Cebu Business Park, Mabolo, Cebu City.

So what is the likelihood one is granted a South Korean Tourist Visa? Check your requirements. From there, you can get an idea.