F-6 marriage visa in Korea: register within 90 days, extend before expiry

This guide is for foreigners in Korea on the marriage migrant visa F-6 (결혼이민) and their Korean families. The rule in one line: within 90 days of entry, apply to the immigration office for foreign resident registration and an extension of stay together, then extend again before each permit ends. It follows the Ministry of Justice (법무부) stay manual of October 2026.

The three F-6 types

F-6 holders can take any job without status-based limits (Enforcement Decree of the Immigration Act, Article 23). Each grant of stay is capped at 3 years.

The first 90 days

The F-6 visa is issued for a stay of up to 90 days. Within 90 days of entry, apply at the immigration office (출입국·외국인관서) for your address for registration (외국인등록) and an extension together (Immigration Act, Article 31).

• F-6-1: the first permit runs to 1 year from entry. Nationals of the 7 countries in the international marriage guidance program (China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Thailand, Cambodia, Uzbekistan and Mongolia) get 2 years at registration after the early adaptation program (조기적응프로그램); those who skip it get up to 2 years from entry in 6-month steps.
• F-6-2: 1 year from entry, or 2 years after the early adaptation program. Registering after day 90 is treated as an immigration offence.
• Documents: application form, passport, 1 photo, fee, the Korean spouse's detailed marriage certificate (혼인관계증명서) and resident registration copy (주민등록등본), your children's family relation certificate if any, a foreigner occupation report and proof of address such as a lease.

Later extensions

• F-6-1: up to 1 year each time, or up to 3 years when you raise a child born to the couple. F-6-2: up to 3 years, with proof that you still raise the child, such as school or hospital receipts.
• Apply before your stay ends (Article 25), while in Korea; an agency cannot file for you from abroad. Book a visit on HiKorea (하이코리아), the immigration website, or the office may not take your case. Korean documents must be issued within the last 3 months unless they state another validity.
• Fees: ₩30,000 for an F-6 extension and ₩35,000 for a residence card (Enforcement Rule of the Immigration Act, Article 72).
• A refusal notice sets a departure deadline of up to 14 days from issue, or the end of your current permit (Enforcement Decree, Article 33). You can file an administrative appeal (행정심판) or a lawsuit (행정소송) within 90 days of learning of the decision.

If the marriage is in trouble or has ended

If you divorced through your own fault but support your former spouse's parents or family, F-6-3 for up to 1 year is still possible. A parent whose visiting rights are not restricted by the family court and who keeps in regular contact with the child can stay on F-6-2, 1 year at a time.

Re-entry, moving and penalties

• A registered F-6 holder who returns within 1 year of leaving needs no re-entry permit (within the remaining stay if shorter). For a return within 1 to 2 years, get a multiple re-entry permit. People under entry restrictions need head office approval.
• Report a new address within 15 days of moving in, at the city, county or district office, the community center or the immigration office (Article 36). Not reporting can bring a fine of up to ₩1,000,000 (Article 98).
• Not registering can bring up to 1 year in prison or a fine of up to ₩10,000,000 (Article 95); overstaying, up to 3 years or ₩30,000,000 (Article 94). Both are grounds for deportation (Article 46), and the office may issue a fine notice (범칙금) instead (Article 102).

Health insurance, permanent residence and citizenship

• Registered F-6 holders join National Health Insurance as local subscribers without the usual 6-month wait, or through a covered employer.
• Permanent residence (F-5-2): after 2 years or more of continuous F-6 stay in a normal marriage, with good conduct, household income of at least the previous year's per-capita gross national income (GNI) or median household assets, and completion of the Korea Immigration and Integration Program (사회통합프로그램) or 60 points in its final test. Parents raising a child of the marriage and people whose marriage ended through no fault of their own can also apply after 2 years on F-6. Permanent residents have no stay limit, need no re-entry permit for 2 years, and face deportation only in narrow cases such as insurrection or a sentence of 5 years or more for certain crimes (Immigration Act, Articles 10-3 and 46).
• 3 years after getting F-5, residents aged 18 or over on the local foreign resident register can vote in local elections (Public Official Election Act, Article 15).
• Naturalization: possible after living in Korea for 2 years in a row while married, or after 3 years of marriage with 1 year living in Korea while married (Nationality Act, Article 6). The same periods count if the marriage ended through no fault of yours or you raise a minor child of the marriage. Conduct, livelihood and basic knowledge are still checked (Article 5). Within 1 year of naturalization you must give up your other nationality or, as a marriage migrant, pledge not to use it in Korea (Article 10).

Before you arrive

• A Korean inviting a national of the 7 countries completes the international marriage guidance program (국제결혼 안내프로그램), unless the couple dated during the Korean's stay of 6 months or more in the spouse's country or a long-term stay in a third country, or during the foreign spouse's legal stay of 91 days or more in Korea, or for pregnancy, birth or other humanitarian reasons.
• The Korean spouse submits a health certificate; the foreign spouse submits one with a tuberculosis test and a criminal record certificate (Enforcement Rule, Article 9-5).
• Show how you met: photos and messages on up to 5 pages, plus the broker's registration or the introducer's ID copy. Officers may interview you.
• A change to F-6 inside Korea is not allowed after short-term or visa-free entry, unlawful stay, an extension for departure or a criminal record beyond a simple fine, except for pregnancy, a birth or a child of the couple. Otherwise apply at a Korean embassy abroad.

Checklist

• Within 90 days of entry: book on HiKorea, register and apply for the first extension.
• Extend before every permit ends and report a move within 15 days.
• Plan long trips around the 1-year re-entry rule.
• After 2 years, check the F-5 and naturalization rules. For questions, call the Immigration Contact Center at 1345.