Process of applying a South Korea Tourist Visa

Tourist Visa is one of the most important requirement before you can set foot in South Korea. Applying for it is very easy. You just only need to have all the requirements ready and your entirely set for your application in their embassy. The Embassy of the Republic of Korea in the Philippines is located at McKinley Town Center, 122 Upper McKinley Rd, Taguig, 1634 Metro Manila.

Below are the general requirements:

1. Visa application form.

You must print out a copy of the application form and fill-up the form by hand. You can download the form here: http://embassy_philippines.mofa.go.kr/english/as/embassy_philippines/visa/download/index.jsp

2. Passport size photo

Photo must be colored with white background

3. Philippine passport

For expiring passports, passport validity remaining should be 6 months

4. Photocopy of passport Bio page

For me, I used a smartphone with high camera quality in capturing the bio page of my passport then I printed it out in our office. (Less hassle on my side 😊 )

Below are the additional requirements:

For Employees:

1. COE (Certificate of employment).

Request a COE on your company and print it out. It should contain the following:

-          Your position/work title

-          Complete date of hired

-          Annual salary

-          Address of your office

-          HR (Human Resource) contact number or HR email address (This will be called by the officials in Korean Embassy for proof of identity purposes)

2. Income Tax Return

A photocopy of your income tax return (ITR Form 2316). You can also request this to your employer. If you frequently traveled to some of the OECD member countries within the last 5 years, you are exempted to submit this requirement. For list of OECD member countries, visit this link: http://www.oecd.org/about/membersandpartners/list-oecd-member-countries.htm

3. Bank Certificate

Request a bank certificate where your show money is deposited. In my case, my savings account is BPI. I visited one of their BPI branch, get my number for the line and filled up the form the bank teller gave me. It only took me about 20-30 minutes in getting my bank certificate. You doesn’t need to go to the branch where you applied your account in requesting a bank certificate. You can request it to any BPI branch. Same with BDO. My friend’s account is with BDO and she said, it can also acquire it to any branch. The only difference is that for BDO, you can claim it the next business day. Please also ensure that the following are included in your bank certificate:

-          Account Type

-          Current Balance of your account

-          Account opening date

-          Monthly ADB (Average Daily Balance)

My show money is around 50 thousand pesos. 😊

4. CTC (Certified True Copy) of Bank statements or passbook for the last three months

When I requested my bank certificate in a BPI branch, I also requested for the bank statements. It saves me time and effort.

5. Original and photocopy of valid visa(s) to OECD member countries for the last 5 years. Also include the arrival stamps. These will help you to have a high chance of having your visa to be approved.

6. Invitation letter and photocopy of Korean friend passport and ID

This is for Filipinos who is invited by a Korean friend in their country. You must also provide a photocopy of their passport and ID card.

7. Invitation letter and Korean company’s business permit

You need to ask a copy of the Korean company’s business permit who invited you to visit their country for business purposes and also an invitation letter from them.

8. Copy of PRC (Professional Regulation Commission) card or IBP (Integrated Bar of the Philippines) card

Only provide this if necessary

For non-employees, you can check other requirements in Embassy of the Republic of Korea in the Republic of the Philippines site. Below is the link:

http://embassy_philippines.mofa.go.kr/english/as/embassy_philippines/visa/requirement/

Continue reading here for the process of applying and claiming your visa.