What is the  Korea e-Arrival Card?

A free online entry declaration you can file in the 3 days before arriving in Korea, arrival day included. It is not a visa. The paper arrival card is still accepted at the counter, so filing online ahead of time is a choice rather than a second requirement.

What is it?

Korea’s online arrival card, filed on the government’s own portal — officially the Korea Electronic Arrival Card, shown there under the short name e-Arrival Card.

  • It holds the same validity as the paper arrival card
  • It is a separate system from the Korea Electronic Travel Authorization (K-ETA)

Who needs one?

Required

  • Korean VISA holders
  • K-ETA exempt individuals
  • Active service members according to the US-ROK Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA)
  • UN passport holders
  • APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC) holders
  • Seafarers

Not required

  • Citizens of the Republic of Korea
  • Holders of a Korean Residence Card (including Permanent Resident Card or Overseas Korean Resident Card)
  • K-ETA holders
  • Group (electronic) visa holders
  • Foreign flight attendants of aircraft entering Korea

Both lists are the portal’s own. The two K-ETA lines are not a contradiction: holding a valid K-ETA takes you off the filing list, while being excused from applying for one puts you on it. We leave out a sixth exclusion the portal still shows — visa-free group tours at Yangyang and Muan — because the dates it names have passed.

When to file

3 days

Those three days include your arrival day. The portal’s own example: arriving on the 31st, you can file on the 29th, 30th, or 31st.

A submission lasts 72 hours, and it is used up once you pass through immigration. Didn’t file in time? You can still file any time before the counter, or fill in a paper arrival card there.

How to file

  1. Open www.e-arrivalcard.go.kr
  2. Choose Individual for 1 to 9 people, or Group/Travel Agency for 2 to 1,000
  3. Enter passport, trip, and stay details
  4. Enter the six-digit verification code
  5. Submit — you don’t have to present the issue number at the counter

The portal allows a third party to file for a traveler who cannot do it themselves, and it says the same consequences apply when false information is filed on someone’s behalf.

Rather not type it all out? visayes fills in the official form under your supervision — you review it, submit it yourself, and pay only after the official government site confirms it has your submission.

Fix a mistake

Purpose, stay details, or departure date
Correct them on the portal
Arrival date
Correctable within 3 days from your first submission
A detail you filed was inaccurate
Keep your issue number handy — the inspector may ask to see it

Never pay a third party to “fix” it.

Spot the official site

www.e-arrivalcard.go.kr

If the address bar does not say www.e-arrivalcard.go.kr, you are not on the government’s e-Arrival Card site. The portal’s notice board carries English headlines, but the notices themselves stay in Korean.

There is no official mobile app; filing happens on the portal itself.

FAQ

Is it free?
Yes — the portal charges nothing. The K-ETA it gets mistaken for costs 10,000 won; this card does not.
Is it a visa?
No. It is an entry declaration; visa rules depend on your passport, and Korean visa holders file one too.
Already have a K-ETA?
Then you are not subject to the e-Arrival Card while it still has validity left.
Family trip?
One Group/Travel Agency filing covers 2 to 1,000 people who share the same arrival date and the same flight or vessel.
Just transiting?
Transiting without entering, you don’t file one. Clearing immigration to collect your bags, you do — and the portal lists airport addresses to give as your stay.
How current is this?
The last change we recorded on the official e-Arrival Card portal was 2 Sep 2026.

Does your passport need the K-EAC?