If you will stay in Korea for more than 90 days, you generally must complete foreigner registration at the immigration office responsible for your Korean address. After registration is accepted, you can receive a Foreign Residence Card, often still called an ARC.
This is usually not an airport-arrival procedure. You normally need a Korean place-of-stay address, a HiKorea visit reservation, and documents that match your specific status of stay. Short-term visitors staying 90 days or less do not automatically qualify for or need a residence card.
Who needs a Korea residence card after arrival?
Under Korea’s immigration law, foreign nationals intending to stay for more than 90 days generally must register as foreigners within 90 days of entry. Applications are generally handled by the immigration office with jurisdiction over the applicant’s actual place of stay.
This commonly applies to long-term students, trainees, employees, professionals, working holiday participants, dependants, spouses, researchers, teachers, investors, and other long-term residents. A person granted or changed to a qualifying long-term status while in Korea may also have a registration obligation under the applicable legal rules.
There are exceptions, including certain diplomatic or international-organization personnel and people with comparable privileges. Check the rules for your own status rather than assuming that every visa holder follows the same process.
National Law Information Center: Immigration Control Act provisions
Eligibility and application conditions
Long-term stay is the central test
The usual rule is based on an intended stay exceeding 90 days, not simply on holding a visa. A visa, visa-free entry permission, or K-ETA is not the same thing as a Foreign Residence Card.
Short-term tourists, visitors, and short-term business travelers who are admitted for 90 days or less would not normally complete first-time foreigner registration solely because they entered Korea.
National Law Information Center: related statutory provision
Use the office responsible for your address
Book and attend the immigration office that covers your Korean residence address. It may not be the office closest to your school, workplace, or preferred neighborhood. If you move, you may have separate address-reporting duties, so use an address you can document accurately.
Ministry of Justice: immigration office locations
Documents to prepare
Prepare both the core documents used for first-time registration and the supporting documents required for your particular status of stay. Immigration may request additional evidence where necessary.
Core documents
- Completed Integrated Application Form
- Original passport
- One recent passport-style color photo
- Evidence of your Korean place of stay
- Required issuance fee and an accepted payment method
- Status-specific supporting documents
Official guidance identifies the passport, proof of residence in Korea, and photo as core registration items. The Integrated Application Form is used for foreigner registration and other stay-related services.
Ministry of Justice: Integrated Application Form and photo guidance
Photo standard
The Ministry of Justice guidance specifies a color photo measuring 3.5 cm by 4.5 cm, taken within the previous six months. The applicant should face forward against a plain or white background, without a border or items that obscure the face.
Bring a compliant physical photo even if you submitted a photo during a visa application. Visa processing and foreigner registration are separate procedures.
Proof of Korean address
You need documents supporting the Korean address you report. The acceptable evidence can vary depending on whether you rent directly, live in a university dormitory, stay with family, or use employer-provided housing.
Do not rely only on a checklist from a school, employer, friend, or blog. Confirm the address evidence accepted for your status and local office through HiKorea or the Immigration Contact Center.
HiKorea guidance document: checking required forms and documents
Status-specific documents
- Students and trainees: school enrollment, attendance, or training documents may be required.
- Employees and professionals: employment-related documents may be required.
- Family and dependant applicants: family-relationship documents may be required.
- Working holiday participants: verify the current requirements for your individual program and status.
- Applicants changing status in Korea: bring documents connected to the approved or requested change.
The Korea Visa Portal is primarily for visa-related processes. After arrival, foreigner registration and most stay administration are handled through immigration procedures.
Korea Visa Portal
Step-by-step: appointment, application, and collection
- Check your deadline. If you are required to register after entry, count 90 days from your entry date. Do not wait until the last few days to search for an appointment.
- Confirm the office with jurisdiction over your address. Use your actual Korean place of stay, not merely the location of your employer or school.
- Book a visit through HiKorea. The Ministry of Justice directs applicants to use the HiKorea visit-reservation service for stay-related petitions, including foreigner registration.
- Complete the Integrated Application Form. Match your name, passport number, address, contact information, and requested service exactly to your supporting documents.
- Attend with original documents. Bring your passport, reservation receipt, form, photo, proof of address, status-specific documents, and payment method.
- Keep the receipt and collection instructions. Confirm the expected collection date, collection location or delivery option, and identification requirements before leaving the office.
Making a HiKorea reservation
Official guidance states that reservations can be made after member login or non-member identity verification, and that the reservation must be made in the applicant’s real name. Same-day reservations are not normally available. The guidance also states that a person outside Korea can make a reservation from the day after entering Korea.
Save or print your reservation confirmation. Use the applicant’s own details even if someone helps prepare the booking.
Ministry of Justice: HiKorea visit-reservation guidance
Check your form before signing
- Name spelling exactly as shown in the passport
- Passport number and expiration date
- Korean residential address and contact details
- Correct status-of-stay category
- Consistent information across the form and supporting documents
Ministry of Justice: stay-service form guidance
Fees and processing time
A Ministry of Justice announcement states that the Foreign Residence Card issuance fee became KRW 35,000 from January 1, 2025, following the introduction of integrated IC chips in physical cards. Because fees and payment arrangements can change, confirm the current fee and payment method before your appointment.
Processing time is not a single fixed nationwide number. It can vary by office workload, status of stay, document review, and collection method. Your receipt or collection notice is the practical record for your individual collection date.
Ministry of Justice: Foreign Residence Card fee announcement
Collection and delivery
Collection procedures can differ by office. Immigration has operated a registered-mail home-delivery option for residence cards, but availability and detailed procedures may change. Ask the receiving officer whether collection at the office or delivery is available for your case.
If you receive an IC-enabled physical card, it may support the separate Mobile Residence Card service. This is an additional identity service and does not replace the original registration process.
Ministry of Justice: residence-card delivery service information
Ministry of Justice: Mobile Residence Card information
Important mistakes to avoid
- Confusing a visa with a residence card. Entry permission or a visa does not itself complete foreigner registration.
- Booking the wrong office. Your application is generally handled according to your place of stay.
- Using an outdated generic checklist. D-2, E-series, F-series, and H-1 applicants can need different evidence.
- Bringing copies instead of originals. Unless immigration specifically accepts another format, bring original documents.
- Leaving the address evidence until the last minute. Accommodation type can affect which documents are accepted.
- Assuming appointment scarcity changes the legal deadline. If you cannot obtain a reservation or are uncertain about timing, seek official instructions promptly.
How first registration differs from other procedures
Short-term visit
A short-term tourist or visitor staying 90 days or less would not normally apply for a Foreign Residence Card as the next step after entry.
Long-term study, work, family, or working holiday stay
Foreigner registration is generally the next immigration step after arrival when the stay exceeds 90 days and no exemption applies.
Changing to a long-term status in Korea
This can involve a different timing rule and supporting documents connected to the new status. Do not treat it as identical to a routine first registration after entry.
Extension of stay or address change
An existing cardholder applying to extend a stay or report a change is not making a first-time registration application. Use the procedure that corresponds to the specific change you need to report.
Overseas Korean domestic-residence reporting
Domestic-residence reporting for eligible overseas Koreans is a separate framework and should not be assumed to be the same as standard foreigner registration.
FAQ
Can I apply for a Korea residence card at the airport?
Generally, no. First-time foreigner registration is normally handled by the immigration office responsible for your Korean address, after you arrange a HiKorea reservation and prepare the required documents.
Can I apply before I have a permanent apartment?
You must be able to report a Korean place-of-stay address and provide evidence acceptable to immigration. Whether a dormitory, family home, temporary arrangement, or other accommodation is acceptable depends on the facts and documents. Confirm this before your visit.
Is it still called an ARC?
Many residents still say “ARC,” short for Alien Registration Card. Official English materials commonly use “Foreign Residence Card” or “Residence Card.”
Can the card be delivered by mail?
Registered-mail delivery has been offered, but availability and procedures may depend on the office and current service rules. Confirm the available collection method when you apply.
What if I do not know which documents apply to my visa?
Check the relevant HiKorea information and contact the Immigration Contact Center at 1345 in Korea. Official English guidance also lists +82-1345 for callers from abroad.
Ministry of Justice: Immigration Contact Center 1345
Related Korea visa guides
Professional immigration help
If you need help checking your Korean visa eligibility or preparing an immigration application, Darum Administrative Office is a Ministry of Justice-registered immigration application agency.
Immigration & Visa Consultation →
Information current as of: 2026-10-02
Sources and references
