F-1-D (Digital Nomad / Workation) Korea Visa Guide | 2026

1. What F-1-D Is

F-1-D is for owners of an overseas business, or employees of an overseas company, who are able to work remotely — together with their family. Applicants must be 18 or over (accompanying children excepted) and must have worked in the same industry for at least a year. Stay is granted a year at a time, up to a maximum of three years.

2. Eligibility Checklist

• Owns an overseas business, or is employed by an overseas company, in a role that can be performed remotely.
• Has worked in the same industry for at least one year.
• Is at least 18 years old. Accompanying dependent children are excepted from the age rule.
• Meets the income test, which is set as a multiple of per-capita Gross National Income (GNI) as published by the Bank of Korea for the year before the application.
• Aged 18 to 34: the income requirement is 1.5x GNI. Aged 35 or over: 2x GNI.
• Holds medical insurance, and can produce a criminal record certificate.
• Maintains the employment contract with the overseas entity throughout the stay.

3. Criteria Summary

• F-1-D is not points-based. The decisive variables are your age bracket and the region you will live in.
• Staying in a non-capital region (비수도권) or a designated population-decline area relaxes the income requirement, on documentary proof of where you will be.
• That relaxation is conditional and is checked again at extension: officers verify that you actually stayed in the region you claimed.
• Change of status is available in Korea from short-stay statuses B-1, B-2 and C-3, and holders of other statuses may also change if they meet the requirements.

4. Salary and Contract Rules

• The income threshold is a multiple of per-capita GNI published by the Bank of Korea for the previous year, measured as at the application date — a moving figure, not a fixed amount.
• Base tiers: 1.5x GNI for ages 18 to 34, and 2x GNI for ages 35 and over.
• Living in a non-capital or population-decline region lowers the applicable threshold; the exact relaxed multiples are set in the manual's own table and should be confirmed there before relying on them.
• The employment relationship must be with an entity outside Korea and must continue for the stay to be extended.
• Income is evidenced with payslips and bank balance certificates.

5. Employer and Workplace Change Rules

• Work is performed remotely for the overseas employer or business; this status is not a route into the Korean labour market.
• Employment must be with an overseas legal entity, and continuity of that contract is what supports extension.
• Regional claims carry ongoing obligations, not just a one-time document check.
• Registered holders who leave Korea and return within a year of departure are exempt from obtaining a re-entry permit.

6. Required Documents

• Application form (별지 34호 서식), passport, one standard photograph, and the fee.
• Certificate of employment, evidencing at least one year in the same industry.
• Income evidence — payslips and a bank balance certificate.
• Criminal record certificate and proof of medical insurance enrolment.
• Family relationship documents, where family accompany the applicant.
• Where the relaxed regional income threshold is claimed: proof of intended stay in a non-capital or population-decline area — a lease of a month or more, or use or booking records for a workation facility or accommodation.
• Any further documents the head of the immigration office considers necessary.

7. Fees and Processing

• Stay is permitted one year at a time, extendable to a maximum of three years in total.
• Extension applies the same screening standards as issuance, with an added check on the regional claim.
• Documents issued abroad need an apostille or consular confirmation, with a Korean or English translation attached, and are valid for six months from issue.
• Change of status inside Korea is possible from B-1, B-2 and C-3, and from other statuses where the requirements are met.

8. Common Rejection Reasons

• Income falls below the multiple applicable to the applicant's age bracket and region.
• Less than a year of work in the same industry, or a role that is not genuinely remote.
• The overseas employment contract has lapsed by the time of extension.
• The relaxed regional threshold was claimed but the applicant did not in fact stay in that region.
• Missing medical insurance or criminal record documentation.
• Documents issued abroad lack an apostille or consular confirmation, or are more than six months old.

9. FAQ