Immigration office visits in Korea: booking, Seoul offices, F-4 and E-7

This guide collects practical points for foreigners who deal with Korea's immigration offices (출입국·외국인관서): booking a visit, finding the right office in Seoul, extending an E-7 work visa, and choosing between overseas Korean status (F-4) and permanent residence. It reflects the rules as of October 23, 2026.

Book your visit on HiKorea

Since April 2021, every immigration office has run a visit reservation system, and the Ministry of Justice (법무부) says applications cannot be received without a booking. Book on HiKorea (하이코리아, hikorea.go.kr), the immigration website, for foreigner registration, extensions, changes of status, workplace changes and reports. Bookings must be made at least one day before the visit, so same-day bookings are not possible.

• Choose a date before your stay expires or before your legal reporting deadline. Visiting after the deadline can lead to a fine. If no date is free in time, go to the office for your address before the deadline.
• A booking only reserves a visit; it does not file your application.
• Booking with another foreigner's passport or registration number can be punished by up to 5 years in prison or a fine of up to ₩50,000,000.
• For questions, call the Immigration Contact Center (외국인종합안내센터) on 1345, weekdays 09:00~22:00 (paid call; from abroad +82-2-1345).

Which Seoul office handles your case

Go to the office that covers your address. The Seoul Immigration Office (서울출입국·외국인청) moved from Mokdong to a new building on October 19, 2026, and the old Mokdong office no longer handles any work.

HiKorea also has a tool to look up the office for your address. If you are not sure an office can handle your case, call 1345 before you book.

At the office

• Bring originals and copies. Documents issued abroad need an apostille or consular confirmation, and Korean certificates are generally valid for 3 months from issue.
• Pay fees with revenue stamps (수입인지) or electronic payment; the residence card fee is paid in cash (Enforcement Rule of the Immigration Act, Article 73). Common fees are ₩60,000 for an extension, ₩100,000 for a change of status and ₩35,000 for a residence card (Article 72). Fees are not refunded once the application is accepted.
• The office may ask for more documents than the manual lists. If something is missing, stay calm, explain when you can submit it and ask how to send it.
• In the author's experience, polite and well-prepared applicants do better than those who argue. Know your occupation code and your papers well.

E-7 extensions and travel

For an extension of an E-7 (특정활동) stay, the manual lists the application form, passport and residence card, fee, employment contract, a personal income certificate (소득금액증명 from the tax office, or the company's wage withholding ledger), the company's business registration or corporate register, proof of address, and the company's employer payment record, national tax payment certificate and local tax payment certificate. The office checks that you were paid as the contract says, and it can ask for evidence of the work you actually did under your occupation code.

• Track your expiry date and apply before it ends (Immigration Act, Article 25). Each grant of E-7 stay is capped at 3 years.
• You must be in Korea when you apply, and leaving Korea after applying can lead to a refusal. Plan trips after the decision.
• Registered foreigners normally need no re-entry permit for trips of up to 1 year within their stay period.

F-4 or permanent residence?

Overseas Korean status (F-4, 재외동포) is granted for up to 3 years at a time and can be extended. F-4 holders who have reported a residence in Korea need no re-entry permit for trips within their stay period, have the same rights as Korean nationals in real estate deals and as resident nationals at banks, and can join national health insurance under its rules. They can work freely except in simple labor, work against public morals, or jobs restricted for the public interest (Enforcement Decree of the Immigration Act, Article 23(3)).

Permanent residents (F-5, 영주) have no limits on their activities or length of stay. They must have the permanent residence card reissued every 10 years. They cannot be removed from Korea except for insurrection or foreign aggression crimes, certain sentences of 5 years or more set by ministerial ordinance, or providing ships or papers for illegal entry (Immigration Act, Articles 10-3, 33 and 46).

An F-4 holder who has stayed in Korea on F-4 for 2 years in a row can apply for permanent residence (F-5-6) on meeting one condition, such as annual income at or above the previous year's gross national income (GNI) per capita, or net assets at or above the average in the national household finance survey (가계금융·복지조사). Many people find F-4 enough; weigh your job plans against long-term security.

If you emigrated as a child, first check that the loss of your Korean nationality has been processed. A Korean who voluntarily acquires a foreign nationality loses Korean nationality at that moment and must report the loss to the Minister of Justice (Nationality Act, Articles 15 and 16). An F-4 application needs proof of your former Korean nationality and of the reason and date you acquired the foreign one.

Preparing for E-7 from abroad

E-7 applicants generally need one of the following: a related master's degree, a related bachelor's degree plus 1 year of related experience after the degree, or 5 years of related experience. Exceptions include 1 year of professional work at one of the world's top 500 companies, a bachelor's degree from a university in the TIME top 200 or QS top 500 (no experience needed), a degree from a Korean university, and annual pay of 3 times the previous year's GNI per capita or more, which waives the education and experience rules.

Before you move, get career certificates and pay records from past employers, with an apostille or consular confirmation. They help your employer show that your background fits the occupation code and write a convincing hiring reason letter. Every document must be genuine: submitting false documents is a crime (Immigration Act, Articles 26 and 94).

Checklist

• Book on HiKorea at least one day ahead and before your deadline.
• Check which office covers your address; the Seoul office moved on October 19, 2026.
• Bring apostilled foreign documents and recent Korean certificates.
• For E-7 extensions, bring your income certificate and the company's tax certificates.
• Stay in Korea until your application is decided.