The first weeks in South Korea: the arrival card, your residence card within 90 days and your address within 15 days

Q: What do you arrange before and on arrival?

With a Dutch passport you may stay in Korea for 90 days without a visa. You may not work then. If you want to stay, you need a visa. Which routes there are, you read in residence routes in South Korea . Until 31 December 2026 you as a Dutch citizen need no K-ETA, the electronic travel authorisation. From 1 January 2027 you do, unless Korea extends the exemption again. A K-ETA costs ₩ 10,000 (about € 7) and is valid for three years. Children up to 17, people aged 65 and over and those who already have a visa or a residence card do not need one. Without a K-ETA you fill in the e-Arrival Card , the electronic arrival card. It is free and can be done from three days before your arrival. According to NederlandWereldwijd it may also be done on paper, on arrival. Foreigners in Korea may not demonstrate or take part in political activities; that can lead to deportation. CBD and cannabis are also banned, even on prescription. So have your medicines checked before you leave.

Q: What else do you do in the first weeks?

A bank account. With your residence card and passport; see banking and payments in South Korea . A home. Get a fixed date on your lease as soon as your address is reported. Your driving licence. Drive the first year on an international driving permit, and exchange after that. Your dog. Register it with the municipality; not registering costs up to ₩ 1,000,000. Your AOW. You no longer build up AOW; you request voluntary insurance from the SVB within a year.

Q: Who do you call if something happens?

You call the police on 112 , the ambulance and fire brigade on 119 . The Korean government has an app for emergencies, Emergency Ready. For questions as a tourist there is the Korea Travel Helpline, 1330 . The Dutch embassy is in Seoul, on the tenth floor of the Jeongdong Building, 21-15 Jeongdong-gil, Jung-gu. You can reach it day and night on +82 2 311 8600 . For a passport you book an appointment online.

Q: What do you watch for with the weather and the time?

From July to October there can be typhoons. If you arrive in those months, find out in your first week how your home copes with storms and rain. Korea is 8 hours ahead of the Netherlands in Dutch winter time, and 7 hours in summer time. The travel advice is green for almost all of South Korea. Only the border area with North Korea is red, and the area directly south of it yellow.

In your first weeks in South Korea everything revolves around your residence card, the ARC. You apply for it within 90 days of arrival at the immigration office, for ₩ 35,000. You report a new address within 15 days. Until the end of 2026 you need no K-ETA as a Dutch citizen, from 2027 you do. Your Korean health insurance only starts after six months, unless you work in Korea.

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Written and checked by Auke on 26 October 2026, against the sources at the bottom. Is something no longer right? Report it below and I'll fix it.

In your first weeks in South Korea everything revolves around your residence card, the ARC (Alien Registration Card, officially Residence Card). You apply for it within 90 days of arrival at the immigration office, for ₩ 35,000 (about € 24). If you move after that, you report your new address within 15 days. With the residence card you open a bank account, exchange your driving licence and protect the deposit on your rented home.

What	Deadline	More
e-Arrival Card, the arrival card	online from 3 days before arrival, free; paper is also allowed
K-ETA, the travel authorisation	not needed until 31 December 2026; after that ₩ 10,000, valid for 3 years	not for those with a visa
Declaring cash	above US$ 10,000, on arrival	household goods
Residence card (ARC)	within 90 days of arrival; ₩ 35,000	registration and numbers
Reporting a new address	within 15 days; with F-4 within 14 days	renting
Health insurance (NHIS)	employees from the start of work; others after 6 months	healthcare
Driving with an international driving permit	until 1 year after arrival	car and driving licence
Registering a dog	in your first weeks; new address within 30 days	pet
Extending your stay	before your period of stay ends; ₩ 60,000
Voluntary AOW insurance	within a year after you are no longer insured	SVB

What do you arrange before and on arrival?

With a Dutch passport you may stay in Korea for 90 days without a visa. You may not work then. If you want to stay, you need a visa. Which routes there are, you read in residence routes in South Korea.

Until 31 December 2026 you as a Dutch citizen need no K-ETA, the electronic travel authorisation. From 1 January 2027 you do, unless Korea extends the exemption again. A K-ETA costs ₩ 10,000 (about € 7) and is valid for three years. Children up to 17, people aged 65 and over and those who already have a visa or a residence card do not need one.

Without a K-ETA you fill in the e-Arrival Card, the electronic arrival card. It is free and can be done from three days before your arrival. According to NederlandWereldwijd it may also be done on paper, on arrival.

Foreigners in Korea may not demonstrate or take part in political activities; that can lead to deportation. CBD and cannabis are also banned, even on prescription. So have your medicines checked before you leave.

How do you apply for your residence card?

If you stay longer than 90 days, you register within 90 days of arrival at the immigration office for where you live. Book an appointment in advance through HiKorea, the immigration service's site. Without an appointment you usually will not be seen. The card costs ₩ 35,000, in cash or with proof of cash payment.

If you have F-4 status, as a Korean by descent, you report your residence address instead. That counts as registration. You then report a move within 14 days.

With a residence card you need no re-entry permit if you come back within a year. Always extend your stay before it runs out. That costs ₩ 60,000 (about € 40); for F-6 status ₩ 30,000.

Questions go to the immigration service's 1345 helpline, Monday to Friday from 9 am to 10 pm, not on public holidays. You pay for the call. From abroad you call +82-2-1345.

When are you insured?

If you work for a Korean employer, you are insured with the NHIS, the Korean health insurance, from the start of your work. If you do not work in Korea, you only become compulsorily insured after six months of residence. Your Dutch basic insurance stops when you emigrate, and Korea does not fall under the CAK scheme. So arrange insurance for those first months before you leave. How, you read in healthcare in South Korea.

What else do you do in the first weeks?

A bank account. With your residence card and passport; see banking and payments in South Korea.
A home. Get a fixed date on your lease as soon as your address is reported.
Your driving licence. Drive the first year on an international driving permit, and exchange after that.
Your dog. Register it with the municipality; not registering costs up to ₩ 1,000,000.
Your AOW. You no longer build up AOW; you request voluntary insurance from the SVB within a year.

Who do you call if something happens?

You call the police on 112, the ambulance and fire brigade on 119. The Korean government has an app for emergencies, Emergency Ready. For questions as a tourist there is the Korea Travel Helpline, 1330.

The Dutch embassy is in Seoul, on the tenth floor of the Jeongdong Building, 21-15 Jeongdong-gil, Jung-gu. You can reach it day and night on +82 2 311 8600. For a passport you book an appointment online.

What do you watch for with the weather and the time?

From July to October there can be typhoons. If you arrive in those months, find out in your first week how your home copes with storms and rain. Korea is 8 hours ahead of the Netherlands in Dutch winter time, and 7 hours in summer time.

The travel advice is green for almost all of South Korea. Only the border area with North Korea is red, and the area directly south of it yellow.

In Vertrekklaar this is phase 5 of 5 of the journey, step 5.1: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to South Korea or go straight to step 5.1 in the open plan.

What this rests on

The facts in this article come from these official pages. Rules change. When in doubt, go by the source, not this article.

K-ETA — the exemption extended until 31 December 2026 — k-eta.go.kr
e-Arrival Card — who fills in the electronic arrival card — e-arrivalcard.go.kr
Immigration Act (출입국관리법), articles 25, 31 and 36 — extending, the residence card within 90 days and your address within 15 days — law.go.kr
Enforcement Rules of the Immigration Act (출입국관리법 시행규칙), articles 44-2 and 72 — re-entry within a year and the fees — law.go.kr
HiKorea — appointments at the immigration office and the 1345 helpline — hikorea.go.kr
NHIS — compulsory health insurance for foreigners after six months — nhis.or.kr
NederlandWereldwijd — travel advice for South Korea, with entry, the emergency numbers and the typhoons — nederlandwereldwijd.nl
Dutch embassy in Seoul — address, phone and time difference — netherlandsandyou.nl
SVB — voluntary AOW insurance, to be requested within a year — svb.nl

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