What the Korea visa is
South Korea has two routes in, and which one applies to you is set by your passport.
The visa is required for most of the world's nationalities. You submit full documents and a consular officer assesses them. Tourist visas commonly allow up to 90 days; family visit and business categories have their own terms. This is also the route after a K-ETA refusal.
K-ETA, the Korea Electronic Travel Authorisation, applies only to nationalities covered by a visa exemption arrangement, including Thai passport holders. It is applied for online before travel and allows up to 90 days for tourism. No documents are submitted, no reason is given for a refusal, and there is no appeal.
That second point is why a lot of people end up here. K-ETA is refused more often than travellers expect, airlines will not board you without it, and the route forward is a proper tourist visa application where a human officer reads the evidence you provide. We handle those, and they are some of the most satisfying cases we run, because the applicant finally gets assessed on their actual circumstances.
You cannot work in Korea on a tourist visa or a K-ETA.
Who needs one
- Foreigners living in or visiting Thailand whose nationality requires a Korean visa. This is the largest group we serve for Korea. The exemption follows your passport, not your Thai residence.
- Anyone whose K-ETA was refused, especially with flights already booked.
- Anyone visiting family in Korea, where a documented family visit visa suits the trip better than a tourist entry.
- Business travellers attending meetings, conferences or working with a Korean company.
- Anyone previously refused entry to Korea or questioned at immigration on a past trip, who wants a documented application this time.
- Thai nationals whose trip or purpose goes beyond what visa free entry covers.
Documents required
The exact checklist depends on your nationality and your visa category, and we confirm it for your case before you gather anything. In outline:
Everyone
- Passport with sufficient validity and blank pages.
- Photograph to Korean specification.
- Completed application form.
- Bank statements showing funds consistent with the trip.
- Confirmed flight reservation and accommodation.
- Day by day itinerary.
- Evidence of your connections to Thailand or your home country, such as employment, property or family.
Proof of occupation
- Employees. Employment certificate with your position, salary and approved leave dates.
- Business owners. Company registration and evidence the business is trading.
- Students. Enrolment certificate, plus the documents of whoever supports you financially.
- Retired applicants. Pension or investment income evidence.
- No standard certificate available. A written explanation of your occupation and income. We prepare this with you.
Additional
- Where visiting relatives: an invitation letter and evidence of their status in Korea.
- Your K-ETA refusal record, if you have one. We address it directly in the file rather than leaving the officer to wonder.
- For foreign residents of Thailand, your Thai visa, employment and local documents.
Financial requirements
Korea publishes no minimum balance. What is assessed is whether your statements show funds consistent with the trip you have described and with the income you have declared.
This is exactly what K-ETA never looks at, and it is why the visa route works after a refusal. Korea does not publish its K-ETA criteria, so nobody can tell you with certainty why a particular application was declined. What we see repeatedly is that K-ETA judges people on very little information: a short form, no supporting documents, no opportunity to explain anything. A new passport with no travel history, a small error in the form, or an employment description that does not fit neatly into the space provided can all produce a refusal from an applicant whose circumstances are entirely sound.
The visa application is where your finances, your employment, your itinerary and your connections at home are actually read by a person. A K-ETA refusal does not damage that application in itself.
What this costs
- Our fee: 4,500 THB. This covers identifying the right category, document preparation, the forms, your relatives in Korea briefed where relevant, submission and tracking through to the decision.
- Visa fee is set by the Korean embassy and varies by nationality and category under reciprocity, paid separately. We confirm yours before you commit to anything.
How we help
You are not buying information, you are buying execution. We establish which visa your nationality and purpose call for, then go through everything you have against that category's checklist and give you one list built for your circumstances rather than the full one. If you are coming to us after a K-ETA refusal with a fixed travel date, we tell you immediately what the timeline looks like, so you can make decisions about your booking rather than waiting to find out. Then we assemble your employment, financial and travel documents, write the itinerary, and document your connections to Thailand or to home. Where relatives in Korea are involved, we deal with them directly on the invitation and status documents. Where there has been a K-ETA refusal, we address it openly in the file and build around your actual circumstances. We lodge the application, track it, respond to anything the embassy asks for, and check the validity and permitted stay when the visa is issued, before you finalise your travel.
FAQ
1. Does my nationality need a visa for Korea?
Most do. A limited group of countries hold visa exemption arrangements, with K-ETA required in place of a visa. Send us your passport details and we will confirm which applies to you.
2. My K-ETA was refused. What now?
A tourist visa. It is a different process, assessed by a consular officer on the documents you provide, and it is the route that gives you a proper hearing. Send us the refusal and your travel dates.
3. Will Korea tell me why my K-ETA was denied?
No. K-ETA gives no substantive reason and has no appeal. The visa application is where your circumstances actually get looked at.
4. I already booked flights and my K-ETA was refused. How fast can you work?
Tell us your travel date straight away. Processing runs in working days, and we will tell you immediately what is achievable so you can make decisions about your booking.
5. Does a K-ETA refusal hurt my visa application?
Not in itself. The consular officer is doing a completely different and far more thorough assessment. We include the refusal openly and build the file around your actual circumstances.
6. How long can I stay on the visa?
Tourist visas commonly allow up to 90 days. Family visit and business categories have their own terms, and we will confirm what your category gives you.
7. Can I work in Korea on a tourist visa or K-ETA?
No. Both are for tourism and short visits. If work or study is the goal, there is a separate category and we will look at which one fits.
8. I am a foreigner living in Thailand. Can I apply from here?
Yes. Applying where you live, work and bank is the natural choice, and your Thai visa, employment and local documents all form part of the file. This is one of the most common cases we handle for Korea.
9. I want to visit my daughter who lives in Korea. Does that change things?
It may point to a family visit category rather than a tourist visa, which can suit a longer stay better. It needs her status in Korea and your relationship documented. Tell us the details and we will recommend the right route.
10. Can I be refused entry even with a visa or K-ETA?
Yes. Both give you permission to travel to Korea and request entry, and the immigration officer at the airport makes the final decision. We prepare a pack with your return ticket, accommodation and itinerary so you arrive ready.
11. What if I do not have every document on the list?
Most applicants do not. Send us what you have and we will work out what is genuinely needed for your category and what can be evidenced another way.
12. What if I was refused a Korean visa before?
Send us the details. The decision belongs to the Korean embassy and no one can promise an outcome, but we build the new file around whatever was not established last time.
Whether you hold a passport that needs a Korean visa outright, or an exempt one where K-ETA has been refused, the answer is the same: a properly documented application, assessed by a person. Send us your passport details and travel dates and we will confirm what is needed for your case.
