student visa in korea - Lomelono Travel Solutions

Your Korean dream might be possible, but the Korean visa application can be a nightmare if you don’t plan ahead. Most universities provide support with the visa process, so it’s important to get on their good side as much as possible.

It’s not only in the united states where students can study with a visa. in fact, you can get a student visa almost anywhere around the world. while researching on this topic, i’ve found out that there are different types of iaea under wich you can study or travel and explore korea depending on your field of study or interests. for example, there are about 70 academic fields where you can get an iaea in korea. take a look at our list below to discover which one fits you the most!

The Republic of Korea (commonly referred to as the ROK or Korea), is a name commonly used to refer to South Korea. It’s an East Asian territory that consists of several islands in the western part of the Korean peninsula. More than 50 million people reside in South Korea which has a higher population density compared to its neighbour, North Korea. The country is a popular study abroad location, attracting more than 100,000 students every year. In 2009, information published by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism revealed that outbound tourism spending was up 10% on 2008 and reached US $3.43 billion.

Student visa in Korea

If you are planning to study in Korea, you will need to apply for a student visa. There are different kinds of student visas, depending on the length of your stay and the type of institution you’ll be attending. The type of visa you need depends on whether you’re studying at an undergraduate or postgraduate level, as well as whether your course is on-campus or online.

Korean immigration has strict guidelines around who can get a student visa: you must be over 18 years old and have graduated high school, have passed an English proficiency test such as TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or IELTS (International English Language Testing System), and have enough money to support yourself throughout your stay.

In order to study in Korea, you will need to obtain a student visa. The type of visa you will need depends on what type of school you wish to attend:

If you plan to enroll in an English language school or university, you will need an F-2 student visa. If you plan to attend a Korean language school, then you will need an F-4 student visa.

In order to obtain an F-2 or F-4 visa, you must first have an admission letter from the school that has been approved by the Korean Ministry of Justice. You will then need an official copy of your passport and a copy of your birth certificate. You will also need proof of financial support for your stay in Korea (such as bank statements). Finally, if applying for an F-4 visa, make sure that your documents are notarized by a notary public or consular officer from your home country—this is required by Korean law!

All degree-seeking international students must obtain a student visa (D-2) before the beginning of the semester at Korea University. Other types of visa that permit international students to be enrolled in a degree-seeking program at a university in Korea (ex. F-type, E-type, A-type, etc.) are acceptable as well. However, short-term visas such as B-type or C-type visas are not acceptable as these visas do not allow foreigners to take academic programs at a university in Korea. Student visa (D-2) can be acquired at a Korean embassy or consulate in the applicant’s home country.

The application for student visa (D-2) requires a number of documents like the Certificate of Admission (CoA), which will be issued by the International Education Team at Korea University. Proof of Final Academic Credentials and Financial Statement (ex. bank account, scholarship, etc.) which serves as proof of student’s budget for expenses while staying in Korea are needed too. Keep in mind that these documents may take a long time to be issued, and additional requirements may be asked of you during the process. Hence, it is recommended that students contact the Korean embassy or consulate in their residing country well ahead of time, to ask for the documents needed for student visa (D-2) application, and prepare them in advance to get the visa on time.

After the application is approved, the Korean embassy or consulate will issue a D-2-2 (for undergraduate students) visa under the name of Korea University. If your visa is incorrectly issued (like D-2-1, D-2-3, etc.), please contact the embassy and correct your visa type.

For freshmen who may be already in Korea with a student visa (D-2) issued with the Certificate of Admission (CoA) from another university, it is mandatory for you to make a departure and apply for a new student visa (D-2) with the Certificate of Admission (CoA) issued from Korea University at the Korean embassy or consulate in your home country.

The general requirements for student visa (D-2) application are the following:

Table of Contents

Required Documents

Application form (for visa)
Passport, and one copy of the passport ID page (the page with your photo)
Passport sized photo (3.5cm×4.5cm with white background; must be taken within the past 6 months)
Certificate of Admission (issued by International Education Team at Korea University)
Application fee 60 ~ 90 USD
ID card (personal ID in residing country)
Certificate of KU Business Registration (required for KU International Education Team individually if needed)
Invitation Letter from NIIED (National Institute for International Education of Korea) (if applicable)
Certificate of Completion for Korean language training (with the attendance rate during training period stated) (if applicable)
Tuberculosis Test Certificate (required to the students from 19 countries listed below ONLY):
- Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, East Timor, India, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Philippines, Laos, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam
- If the applicant has never submitted it after 2016. 3. 2, it is mandatory for them to resubmit it
2 Additional documents (required for the students from 21 countries listed below ONLY):
- Bangladesh, China, Egypt, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam
① Final Academic Credentials (choose one from the following)
- Apostille / Confirmation from Korean embassy or consulate located in the country where applicant’s final education was complete / Documents from the ‘China Credentials Verification’ (for students who graduated from the institutions in China
② Financial Statement – 20,000 (USD) including tuition fee (with receipt), and scholarship (if applicable)
- It is advised that students contact the Korean embassy or consulate in their home country before applying for the visa to check if there is any additional document required for the application.

All international students are strongly advised and instructed to obtain a student visa (D-2) at the Korean embassy or consulate in their home countries. However, if they are already in Korea without a student visa (D-2), they need to apply for the visa as soon as possible upon arrival. They must apply for a student visa (D-2) and an Alien Registration Card (ARC) together at once at Sejongno Immigration Office. The students must visit the immigration website (HiKorea) and make an online reservation for the visit to Sejongno Immigration Office. Late application after the beginning of the semester may lead to a fine, and it is extremely difficult to visit Sejongno Immigration Office after the classes start. Again, it is better to avoid entering Korea with a visa different from a student visa (D-2). The students must try to get a student visa (D-2) at a Korean consulate or embassy in their home countries.

1. Decide which visa you need

What kind of visa you can apply for depends on your nationality and for how long you will study in Korea. There are four different visa variants to choose from for those who want to study in South Korea:

Take a short course on visa waiver – up to 90 days for most nationalities

Citizens of EU (except Cyprus and Portugal), the United States, Australia and many other nations are entitled to travel to Korea for 90 days as a tourist without a visa. Canadians can stay for 180 days while Portuguese and Russians can stay for 60 days. Some nations are limited to 30 days, and some countries cannot travel to Korea without a visa. Read more here.

You can take a short program on visa waiver in South Korea within your allowed time limit. You can, for example, take a language course at Lexis Korea or a summer course at a university. If you don’t have time to apply for a student visa to Korea, it might be possible to enter Korea on visa waiver and switch to a student visa after you arrive but before you have overstayed your visa waiver. Please talk to your school before attempting this solution. We recommedn applying for a student visa before going to Korea.

From September 1, 2021 you can travel to Korea on visa waiver again but you must register online no later than 24 hours before departure by applying for K-Eta and pay a fee of 10000 KRW (about 7,5 Euro). Your K-Eta will the be valid for entrance in Korea for two years unless you change passport. When traveling on visa-waiver, you get a stamp in your passport on arrival, and you don’t need to apply for a visa back home. Please note that you must be able to show that you leave Korea within the allowed time period. You don’t need to have a return ticket home; you can show a ticket to another country as well as long as you can prove that you will leave Korea on time. The airlines usually check this when you check-in, and without an exit ticket, you might be denied to board your flight to Korea.

If you need to stay in South Korea for more than 90 days, and you can’t apply for a student visa (for example, if you take a long language course at a school that can’t sponsor a student visa), you can leave South Korea temporarily and go back again to extend your stay with another 90 days. For example: You leave South Korea on day 88 of your visa waiver to visit Tokyo during a weekend. When you return to South Korea, you get another 90-day stamp in your passport. Note that you can only do this once. This is a loophole and nothing that the authorities in South Korea would recommend. Please double-check with your school to see what they recommend before attempting this.

Student visa – valid for your entire study period

If you are planning to study at a Korean university for more than 90 days, then you should apply for a student visa. To apply you need a Certificate of Admission from a Korean university. To obtain such a document, you usually need to pay for at least 2 terms of 10 weeks each. Korean universities provide 4 terms of 10 weeks per academic year.

A student visa is called a D-visa, followed by a number that varies depending on what you will study in Korea. On a student visa, you can apply for the right to work part-time after you have studied in Korea for six months. Talk to your university for more information.

Working Holiday visa – study or work for a year in South Korea

Another option for those who want to stay for a longer period of time in Korea is the WorkIing Holiday visa (H-1 visa). It’s valid in a year; you can only get one’s life when you are between 18-30 years old. On a Working Holiday visa you have the right to work and study at private institutions such as language schools.

According to our latest information South Korea has Working Holiday Agreements with Australia, Austria, Belgium, Chile, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Japan, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, UK and The United States. Read more about the Working Holiday Visa at the Korean Embassy.

Family Visas – The best visa for people of Korean heritage

If you have previously had Korean citizenship or if you have a parent or grandparent who has had it, you can apply for a F-4 visa that is only available to people of Korean heritage. This visa entitles you to work and study in Korea for two years without any restrictions. Then you have the opportunity to extend your visa. Read more about the F-4 visa here.

During the remaining steps, we will primarily focus on the student visa since that is what most students would apply for.

2. Apply to a school in Korea

Before applying for a student visa, you must apply and get admitted to a Korean university. Universities often have specific application windows. For the application you usually need:

The school’s application form
A copy of your passport
Your high school diploma in English
Proof that you have can finance your studies in Korea (usually at least $10000)
Motivation letter

We can assist you with the application to study abroad semesters and degree programs in English at Hankuk University of Foreign studies in Seoul and korean language courses at Konkuk University in Seoul and Yeungnam University in Daegu. Then you do not need to submit a financial statement.

3. Get your visa documents (if you have applied for a university)

After you have been admitted to a university program, it is time to pay the tuition fee (which usually is very reasonable in Korea) and get a good study abroad insurance. Once it has been paid the university will send you a Certificate of Admission. When you have received this document, you can apply for a student visa at the Korean embassy in your home country. If you wish to enter Korea on a student visa, we recommend that you pay your tuition fee no later than 2 months before your program starts. This should give you enough time to receive your admission documents and apply for the visa. If you don’t have enough time to get a student visa before your program starts you can travel to South Korea on visa waiver, as a last resort, and transfer to a student visa on-site as we described under headline 1 above. Contact your school for more information about this before you leave.

4. Apply at the Korean Embassy in your country

You apply for a visa at the Korean embassy in your home country. Here you can find the addess, website and other contact details to the Korean embassy in your home country.

Contact the Embassy or your school if you have questions about the visa application. Below you which documents that is usually requested at the embassy when you apply for a student visa or Working holiday visa. Please note that this information might differ for different embassies and nationalities so make sure to check the instructions on the Korean Embassy’s website in your country for more details.

For student visa

Your passport in original with a copy of the photo page. The passport must be valid at least 6 months after the planned entry to Korea.
Visa documents from a Korean university CoA or Confirmation of Visa Issuance (where you fill out section 2 and 3.5)
Visa application fee
During the pandemic you will also need to fill out a Health Condition report form and take a Covid test within 48-hours of departure. If you are unvaccinated or come from a country where quaranitine is mandatory you will also need the Consent for Isolation form. Check with the Korean embassy for details.
1 passport photo (not needed for students with a Confirmation of Visa Issuance)
A filled in visa application form (see the embassies’ website for an updated version).
Some Embassies might also ask for Proof of financing and your high school diploma, so always double check with the Korean Embassy or Consulate which documents they need.
If you attend a university exchange program, additional documentation may be required.

For working holiday visa

Your passport in original and a copy of the photo page. The passport must be valid at least 6 months after the entry to Korea.
A filled in visa application (see the embassies’ website)
Visa application fee
1 passport photo
Proof that you have access to at least $ 12,000
A return ticket within one year
Proof that you are insured during your stay in South Korea
A one page description, in English, of what you will do in South Korea
During the pandemic you will also need to fill out a Health Condition report form and take a Covid test (before arriving in Korea). Check with the Korean embassy for details.
A health certificate filled in by your doctor

All documents must be in English or Korean. Don’t forget to double check with the Embassy which documents are required in your country.

5. Get your visa

In Sweden it usually takes about two weeks to get your visa after the Embassy has received your visa application. Waiting times might differ in other countries. Contact the embassy if you are short of time to see if they can help you faster. You must collect your visa personally at the Korean Embassy unless you use a visa agency that does the job for you.

A student visa is usually valid for entrance in 3 months after issuance, and you can currently stay in Korea for 6 months before the visa needs to be renewed, but to some schools you can get visas that last longer without renewal. Your school can help you with this if you take a longer course at a university. Please note that these data can differ in various countries so double check what is written under Validity Period of Visa and Period of Stay on your student visa.

6. Flight and landing card

From April 1, 2022 quarantine is no longer needed for fully vaccinated students (by WHO standards) who preregister their vaccination status before arriving in Korea. You need a negative Covid-test (PCR-test), with a result written in English or Korean, taken within 48 hours of flying to Korea. For more details see the website of the Korean embassy in your country.

Make sure to leave enough margin if you book your flight before you have received your visa. Otherwise, you can book it as soon as your visa has been issued but then prices might be higher. Do not forget to get a good student insurance for your studies in South Korea.

On arrival to South Korea you will be asked to fill in a landing card. If you are traveling on visa waiver, you can indicate that you should check Tour. If you enter on a student visa, you should check Study.

7. Alien registration and possible visa extension

Foreign nationals with a visa that lasts for longer than 90 days shall apply for an Alien Registration Card at the Immigration Office in Korea. Apply within your first 90 days in the country to avoid fines. If you have travelled to Korea on visa waiver you cannot apply for Alien Registration until you have switched to a student visa. Your Alien Card can be used as an ID card in Korea. An alien card in combination with a single entry visa can serve as multiple entry visa according to the Korean embassy.

If you extend your study period in Korea or if you were unable to secure a student visa for your entire stay before traveling to Korea, you may apply for / renew your student visa on-site. First, you pay the school for remaining semesters then you can go to the Immigration Office to prolong your visa. Talk to your university for more instructions. You can read more about fees and required documents at https://www.hikorea.go.kr/pt/CvlapplInfoDetailR_en.pt here you can also apply for a visa extension directly online at a discounted price.

Conclusion

Anyone who wants to study abroad must obtain a student visa from a Korean Embassy or Consulate in their country of residence. This can be obtained only after preparing all the required documents to enter Korea, including an admission letter. The type of visa required differs according to what kind of course (Korean language training, regular degree, research, or exchange student) will be taken.Foreign students who will plan on enrolling in non-degree seeking programs (such as Korean language study or other foreign language study) will need to obtain a D-4 visa. For a student visa, applicants (seeking a degree higher than a professional school, research course, or exchange student course will require a D-2 visa) and those studying Korean language at a university language school will need a D-4 Visa (For more information on student visas, please visit the Korea Immigration Service websitehttp://www.immigration.go.kr/HP/IMM80/index.do)