Can foreigners buy property in South Korea in 2026?

For a purchase contract, the parties ordinarily report the real-estate transaction to the property's city, county, or gu (urban district) within 30 days of signing. Foreign-acquisition rules are a related but distinct layer. Current official guidance sets a 60-day foreign-acquisition reporting route for acquisition by contract, with coordination where the ordinary transaction report covers the required information. Acquisition without a contract, such as inheritance or a court event, follows a different report and trigger, and current law gives a six-month route. Confirm which filing applies with the local office before signing because duplicate-report treatment and documents depend on the transaction.

Some land needs permission before the contract. The statutory categories include designated military-facility protection, cultural-heritage protection, ecological-conservation, and wildlife-protection land. A separate land-transaction-permission designation can also affect a parcel and its intended use. Do not assume a Seoul apartment, Jeju plot, or border-area house is clear from its street address. Obtain the current land-use plan and written local confirmation on the signing date.

Non-resident buyers also face foreign-exchange reporting. The Bank of Korea says overseas-funded acquisitions commonly go through a foreign-exchange bank, while domestic funding such as a Korean loan or assumption of a jeonse deposit can move the filing to the Bank of Korea. Jeonse is a large-deposit lease with little or no monthly rent. Give the bank the contract, funding trail, valuation material, and later registration evidence it requests. Resident foreigners and company buyers can follow different routes.

Order a current registry extract from the Supreme Court Internet Registry Office. This is the official land-and-building ownership and secured-debt record. Match the seller and parcel or unit, then investigate mortgages, seizures, trusts, provisional registrations, easements, and tenant deposits. Recheck immediately before the balance and title transfer.

The Government24 building register shows approved use, area, structure, and violation entries. Compare it with the physical unit. An officetel may be approved for a mixed or business use that changes occupancy, tax, finance, and management consequences. For an apartment, inspect the management rules, repair plans, arrears, parking, and redevelopment position. For land or a detached home, check zoning, road access, boundaries, building permission, agricultural or forest controls, contamination, drainage, and lawful occupancy.

Compare the price with reported contracts in MOLIT (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the national housing ministry), not only asking listings. Use an independent lawyer or judicial scrivener for title and closing work where the risk warrants it. A broker's licence, English contract, or foreign-buyer marketing does not certify title or permitted use.

Budget acquisition tax and related surtaxes, registration and professional costs, then recurring property tax, building management charges, insurance, repairs, and possible comprehensive real-estate tax. Rental income and a later sale can create income, local, and capital-gains obligations. Obtain advice for your ownership count, use, residence, and treaty position rather than applying one headline rate.

Korean banks may lend to foreign buyers, but nationality alone neither guarantees nor prevents approval. Residency, income source, credit evidence, property type, regulated lending limits, deposit liabilities, and foreign-exchange documentation drive underwriting. Secure a written finance condition before committing if the purchase depends on a mortgage.