Immigrant Investor Scheme for Public Business (IISPB)
A residence-for-deposit scheme: you place a fixed sum in a government public fund, hold it for five years, and receive F-2 residence that converts to permanent residence.
The most useful thing on this page is a correction. The official floor is KRW 500,000,000, about USD 369,000, not the KRW 1.5 billion or KRW 3 billion quoted across consultancy sites. Those figures are outdated or belong to a different track, and people routinely rule themselves out of a scheme they can afford.
The second thing to understand is the cost. The deposit is principal-guaranteed and interest-free. You are not investing for a return, you are lending the state five years of returns in exchange for residence, and on any reasonable opportunity cost that is a six-figure sum in forgone growth.
Programme snapshot
| Item | Current rule |
|---|---|
| Main audience | High-net-worth investors, including retirees over 55 |
| Route family | Investment |
| Validity | F-2 residence, renewed while the investment is maintained |
| Stay per entry | Matches the renewal grant |
| Threshold | KRW 500,000,000 standard, about USD 369,000 (2026); KRW 300,000,000 for a retiree investor over 55, about USD 221,000, who must also hold KRW 300,000,000 in assets |
| Renewal | Annual or multi-year, with the investment still in place |
| Settlement | Direct |
| PR clock | 5 years maintaining the investment, then F-5-21 |
| Citizenship clock | 5 years of residence, plus language and civics |
| Family | Spouse and unmarried children receive F-2 with the investor |
| Local employment | Yes, free economic activity |
| Tax headline | Korean resident taxation on worldwide income; the fund return itself is interest-free |
| Processing | 2 to 3 months |
The retiree rate is 60 percent of the standard floor, but age alone does not qualify you. You need to be over 55 and separately document KRW 300,000,000 of assets held at home or abroad.
Application flow
- Confirm you have the full amount in your own name and a clean criminal, tax and immigration record.
- Apply through the Ministry of Justice channel, with the Korea Development Bank receiving the funds.
- Complete source-of-funds and identity checks, including apostilled criminal record and tax documents.
- Transfer KRW 500,000,000, or KRW 300,000,000 on the retiree rate, into the designated public fund.
- Receive F-2 residence, with family included.
- Hold the investment for five years and renew as required.
- Apply for F-5-21 permanent residence at the end of the five years.
Good fit
A couple over 55 with USD 250,000 or more who want Korean permanent residence without running a business, working, or learning enough Korean to pass a points test. It also suits an investor who wants residence in a stable country and is indifferent to the yield, because there is no yield.
Poor fit
Anyone expecting a return on the deposit, since the scheme pays no interest. Anyone who cannot leave the money tied up for five years without touching it. And anyone treating it as a cheaper alternative to the real-estate route, which has different qualifying property and a much higher floor.
Watchpoints
- The real floor is KRW 500,000,000. The KRW 1.5 billion and KRW 3 billion figures on consultancy sites are wrong for this track. The KRW 1,000,000,000 figure belongs to the separate real-estate scheme.
- The deposit is interest-free. Principal is guaranteed, but five years of forgone return is a real cost on top of the amount committed. Model it before deciding.
- The money goes into a public fund, not a business you control. You have no operating role and no say in deployment.
- The retiree rate needs age and assets. Over 55 plus KRW 300,000,000 of separate assets, both documented. Age alone fails.
- Criminal record, tax delinquency and repeated immigration violations disqualify. All three are checked, and the criminal record needs an apostille.
- The investment must stay in place for the full five years. Early withdrawal ends the F-2 status and the PR clock with it.
- The property route is a different scheme. The Immigrant Investor Scheme for Real Estate requires KRW 1,000,000,000 in a government-approved tourism or leisure property in a designated zone, and only pre-approved properties qualify. Do not confuse the two when comparing costs.
Sources
- Korea Immigration Service, Immigrant Investor Scheme for Public Business guidance, checked 2026-10-22
- Korea Development Bank, public fund management role, checked 2026-10-22
- Amounts converted at an assumed KRW 1,355 per USD, which is not an official rate