How do you apply for a residence permit in South Korea in 2026?

First-time long stays usually start at a Korean embassy or consulate. You submit the visa category documents for your nationality and purpose, receive the visa (or a certificate of visa issuance path where used), then enter Korea under that status. Invest Korea’s visa guidance stresses that diplomatic missions issue many first visas, while immigration offices handle later stay management.

If you already hold a qualifying registered status in Korea and need permission for a different activity, apply for a change of status of stay before you start that activity. Easy to Find, Practical Law and HiKorea describe visit reservations plus, for some cases, e-application. Book through HiKorea for the immigration office covering your Korean address. Bring the integrated application form, passport, Residence Card when you have one, place-of-stay evidence, and the status-specific papers listed for the new code. Call the Immigration Contact Center at 1345 when the office finder or eligibility is unclear.

Short-term visitors, visa-waiver travellers, and many tourist or transit statuses are generally blocked from switching into study or employment statuses while remaining in Korea. Plan to leave and file at a mission abroad unless your exact case sits in a published exception. Do not treat a C-3 holiday as a bridge into an E-7 job.

Approval of a long-stay status is not the plastic card. If you intend to remain more than 90 days, complete foreigner registration for the Residence Card within the legal window, with address proof ready for register address. Points-based F-2-7 is usually a later step from an eligible stay, not a first tourist conversion.

Keep work limited to what your status allows. Employer letters, school certificates, investment filings, marriage documents, or remote-income packs must match the HiKorea or embassy list for that code. After the card, queue health insurance and banking. The first-month stack sits in paperwork after moving.