Destination guide · South Korea
Who can visit South Korea visa-free?
Seoul and Jeju — K-ETA required for most Western passports from 2024.
62 passports get visa-free entry, 0 can get a visa on arrival, and 88 can apply for an e-visa online. The remaining 0 nationalities need a full embassy visa.
62visa-free
0visa on arrival
88e-visa
0visa required
Visa-free to South Korea
Passport holders who can enter South Korea without any prior visa application.
- Australia 90d
- Austria 90d
- Bahrain 30d
- Belgium 90d
- Brunei 30d
- Bulgaria 90d
- Canada 180d
- Colombia 90d
- Croatia 90d
- Cyprus 30d
- Czech Republic 90d
- Denmark 90d
- Estonia 90d
- Fiji 30d
- Finland 90d
- France 90d
- Germany 90d
- Greece 90d
- Hong Kong 90d
- Hungary 90d
- Iceland 90d
- Ireland 90d
- Israel 90d
- Italy 90d
- Japan 90d
- Kiribati 30d
- Kuwait 30d
- Latvia 90d
- Liechtenstein 90d
- Lithuania 90d
- Luxembourg 90d
- Macao 90d
- Malta 90d
- Marshall Islands 30d
- Micronesia 30d
- Monaco 30d
- Nauru 30d
- Netherlands 90d
- New Zealand 90d
- Norway 90d
- Oman 30d
- Palau 30d
- Poland 90d
- Portugal 90d
- Qatar 90d
- Romania 90d
- Samoa 30d
- San Marino 30d
- Saudi Arabia 30d
- Singapore 90d
- Slovakia 90d
- Slovenia 90d
- Spain 90d
- Sweden 90d
- Switzerland 90d
- Taiwan 90d
- Tonga 30d
- Tuvalu 30d
- United Arab Emirates 90d
- United Kingdom 90d
- United States 90d
- Vatican 30d
e-Visa for South Korea
Apply online before travel. Usually fast and cheaper than embassy visas.
- Afghanistan
- Algeria
- Angola
- Armenia
- Azerbaijan
- Bangladesh
- Belarus
- Belize
- Benin
- Bhutan
- Bolivia
- Burkina Faso
- Burundi
- Cambodia
- Cameroon
- Cape Verde
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- China
- Comoros
- Congo
- Cuba
- Djibouti
- DR Congo
- Egypt
- Equatorial Guinea
- Eritrea
- Ethiopia
- Gabon
- Gambia
- Georgia
- Ghana
- Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- India
- Indonesia
- Iran
- Iraq
- Ivory Coast
- Jordan
- Kenya
- Kosovo
- Kyrgyzstan
- Laos
- Lebanon
- Liberia
- Libya
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Maldives
- Mali
- Mauritania
- Moldova
- Mongolia
- Mozambique
- Myanmar
- Namibia
- Nepal
- Niger
- Nigeria
- North Korea
- North Macedonia
- Pakistan
- Palestine
- Papua New Guinea
- Philippines
- Rwanda
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Senegal
- Sierra Leone
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- Sri Lanka
- Sudan
- Syria
- Tajikistan
- Tanzania
- Timor-Leste
- Togo
- Turkmenistan
- Uganda
- Ukraine
- Uzbekistan
- Vanuatu
- Vietnam
- Yemen
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
ETA required for South Korea
Electronic travel authorization — a lightweight pre-registration (usually minutes, cheaper than a visa).
- Albania
- Andorra
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Argentina
- Bahamas
- Barbados
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Botswana
- Brazil
- Chile
- Costa Rica
- Dominica
- Dominican Republic
- Ecuador
- El Salvador
- Grenada
- Guatemala
- Guyana
- Haiti
- Honduras
- Jamaica
- Kazakhstan
- Lesotho
- Malaysia
- Mauritius
- Mexico
- Montenegro
- Morocco
- Nicaragua
- Panama
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Russia
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Lucia
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- Serbia
- Seychelles
- Solomon Islands
- South Africa
- Suriname
- Swaziland
- Thailand
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Tunisia
- Turkey
- Uruguay
- Venezuela
Full visa required for South Korea
Passport holders who need to apply for a visa at a South Korea embassy before travel.
Frequently asked questions
Which passport holders can visit South Korea visa-free?
62 passports get visa-free access to South Korea, plus 0 more can enter with visa on arrival. See the full grouped lists above. Another 88 nationalities can apply for an e-visa online before travel.
Do I need a visa for South Korea?
It depends on your passport. Use the lists above to find yours, or try our interactive multi-passport checker if you also hold a residence permit (UAE, US Green Card, Schengen, UK, Canada) — those can unlock additional access.
What's the difference between visa-free, visa on arrival, and e-visa?
Visa-free = you walk through immigration with just your passport. Visa on arrival = you get the visa stamped at the airport / land border, usually for a small fee. e-Visa = you apply online before you travel, and receive an electronic authorization (usually within a few days). ETA = similar to e-visa but lighter-weight — a pre-registration that takes minutes.
How long can I stay in South Korea visa-free?
Day-limits vary by passport — common defaults are 30, 60, or 90 days. Where our data includes a specific day count, it's shown alongside the passport entry. Always double-check with the destination embassy, because day limits change more frequently than the visa-free status itself.
Can a residence permit help me enter South Korea?
Sometimes. Holders of UAE residence, US Green Card, Schengen residence, UK BRP, or Canadian PR can sometimes access additional countries regardless of their home passport. See our Green Card guide, Indian+UAE guide, and Schengen permit guide for details.
How accurate is this list?
Entries come from the community-maintained open-source Passport Index Dataset. It's a reasonable starting point but not individually verified — rules change frequently. Always confirm with the embassy before booking travel. For high-traffic passport-destination pairs, we re-verify against official gov sources (marked with a ✓ on individual passport pages).