Korean Tourist Visa is one of the easiest to apply and obtain by Filipinos, nowadays, but then why apply if you can visit Korea Visa-free, right? Filipinos can visit Korea without needing to apply for a Visa, but be guided with the Visa-free Program set by the Embassy of Korea in the Philippines to know if you are eligible.

I. HERE ARE 3 WAYS TO ENTER SOUTH KOREA VISA-FREE!

1. Tourists in Transit Through Korea

A) Filipinos who hold a valid Visa/s, re-entry permit, or permanent residency status from any of the following countries; Canada, Cyprus, Ireland, New Zealand, Romania, United Kingdom, Schengen (Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland);

• Australia (the visa must be labelled on your passport if not, you must be entering Korea from Australia), and;
• USA (including Guam and Saipan, except flights to Korea via Saipan).

B) No records of any of the following; criminal offence/s (including overstay) in the countries mentioned above, denied entry into Korea, deported or received a deportation order (including fine of more than 5 Million KRW) from Korea within the last 3 years.

C) Confirmed onward ticket to any countries mentioned above or to the Philippines within 30 days after entering Korea (stay of up to 30 days).

D) If you have a transit in another country (that is not mentioned above) on your way to Korea, that particular transit must NOT be more than 3 days. Otherwise, you will not qualify to enter Korea Visa-free.

2. Foreign Transfer Passengers

If you are transferring through Incheon Airport (ICN) for not longer than 72 hours on your way to your 3rd country of destination or country of your nationality, then you can join the “Transit Tourism Program.” You can reserve a slot online through Incheon Airport Transit Tour for FREE, but food and entrance fees of the sites are not included.

3. Jeju Area

Your point of entry (flight or ship) must be directly to Jeju Area with confirmed onward ticket to your 3rd country of destination or to your country of nationality (Philippines) and your stay must not longer than 30 days to qualify for Visa-free entry.

I hope you would be able to take advantage of this Visa-free program opportunity as it isn’t always available in most developed countries and also, because Korea is such a beautiful destination for you to visit! If you didn’t qualify to any of the list above, don’t worry, getting a South Korean Visa is not as complicated as you might think since the Korean Embassy is quite lenient in giving out tourist visas to Filipinos, nowadays. READ THIS: KOREAN VISA GUIDE for Filipinos (Step-by-Step)