F-1-D Digital Nomad (Workation) Visa
A temporary residence status for foreigners working remotely for an overseas employer or their own overseas business while living in Korea.
This is not a soft landing into Korean residence. F-1-D time counts toward nothing: not F-2-7 points, not the F-5 clock, not citizenship. It also forbids Korean employment and Korean clients, so it cannot be used to test the local job market.
The income floor is also not a single number. Since the 2026 reform it is a grid of 1.0x, 1.5x and 2.0x per-capita GNI, set by age and by whether you live in the capital area.
Programme snapshot
| Item | Current rule |
|---|---|
| Main audience | Remote employees or owners of overseas businesses with at least 1 year in the same industry |
| Route family | Remote work |
| Validity | 3 years maximum, built from 1-year grants |
| Stay per entry | 1 year from alien registration, then 1-year extensions |
| Threshold | KRW 52,410,000 to KRW 104,830,000 by age and region (2026), about USD 38,000 to USD 75,900 at KRW 1,380 per USD |
| Renewal | Annual, with income, employment and insurance re-tested |
| Settlement | None |
| PR clock | None. F-1-D years are not counted |
| Citizenship clock | None |
| Family | Spouse and minor children, with a higher income floor |
| Local employment | Prohibited, including invoicing Korean clients |
| Tax headline | A stay over 183 days usually makes you a Korean tax resident on worldwide income; treaty relief is fact-specific |
| Processing | 2 to 4 weeks abroad; in-country change from B-1, B-2 or C-3 now allowed |
| Age | Capital area | Outside the capital area |
|---|---|---|
| 18 to 34 | KRW 78,620,000 (about USD 58,000) | KRW 52,410,000 (about USD 38,700) |
| 35 and over | KRW 104,830,000 (about USD 77,400) | KRW 78,620,000 (about USD 58,000) |
Capital area means Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi.
Application flow
- Work out which cell of the age and region grid you fall into, and where you will actually live.
- Gather the prior year’s payslips, tax records and bank statements. An employer letter alone is not enough.
- Buy insurance with KRW 100,000,000 of cover for treatment and emergency repatriation, per person including each dependant.
- Apply at a Korean mission abroad, or change status in country from B-1, B-2 or C-3.
- Register as an alien within 90 days of arrival, then extend annually with fresh income evidence.
Good fit
A remote employee under 35 earning about USD 39,000 who genuinely intends to live in Busan, Daegu, Jeju or a depopulation area. It also suits an owner running an overseas company from Korea for two or three years.
Poor fit
Anyone earning around USD 40,000 who insists on Seoul, where the floor for that age band is about USD 58,000. Anyone hoping the years count toward permanent residence. Anyone planning to pick up Korean consulting work on the side.
Watchpoints
- The insurance is a specific product, not travel cover. KRW 100,000,000 of treatment and repatriation cover per person, including every dependant. Ordinary travel policies are refused.
- A Seoul address kills the regional discount. The lower threshold needs proof of actual residence: a lease of at least one month, a workation booking or a hotel reservation.
- Family raises the floor regardless of age. With a spouse or children the test becomes 2.0x GNI in the capital area or 1.5x outside it, about KRW 104,820,000 or KRW 78,615,000.
- Income is measured on the prior year. Payslips, tax filings and bank statements, not an employer letter.
- No Korean clients and no local consulting. Breaching this can block later E-7 or F-2 applications, which is the expensive part.
- Three years is the ceiling. The 2026 reform extended the maximum from 2 years and introduced the grid. Nothing credits the time afterwards.
- No published nationality restriction. F-1-D publishes none. The reported Chinese-national restriction sits in the separate D-8-2 category.
Sources
- Korea Immigration Service, F-1-D programme notice and application form, checked 2026-10-22
- Korea Immigration Service, status of sojourn guidance including the 2026 age and region grid, checked 2026-10-22
- Per-capita GNI of KRW 52,410,000 for 2025, used as the multiplier base