Can I enter Korea if my passport expires soon?

You can enter Korea if your passport is valid for the whole time you will stay. But a six-month rule may still apply depending on your nationality, the type of visa and the country you depart from, so check before you go.

Entering Korea: if your passport is valid for your entire stay in Korea, you can enter.

Be careful, though. Depending on your nationality, visa type and country of departure, a six-month rule may apply. For example, some Korean embassies and consulates require your passport to have at least six months of validity left when you apply for a visa.

Your own country’s passport rules, or the rules of a country you transit through, may also require six months or more.

The safest approach is to check three things together: your nationality, whether you need a visa, and every country you will transit through.

K-ETA also depends on your passport expiry date. Even if the K-ETA’s own validity period has not ended, it is valid only until your passport expires.

• •If your passport is valid for your whole stay in Korea, you can enter.
• △A six-month rule may apply depending on nationality, visa type, departure country and transit countries. Some Korean embassies and consulates require at least six months of validity for visa applications.
• •A K-ETA is valid until your passport expires. If the passport expires first, the K-ETA ends on that date too.
• •VisitKorea’s requirements page does not state one general passport validity period, so check your own case.

• •A passport valid for the whole stay, ideally with at least six months left
• •Confirmation from the Korean embassy, your airline and any transit country if the passport expires soon

• •Travelling on a passport that expires during the trip
• •Checking only Korea’s rules and forgetting your home country or a transit country
• •Assuming a K-ETA stays valid after the passport expires

• 🛂Can I enter Korea without a K-ETA?Only if your passport is on the temporary exemption list, which runs through December 31, 2026. Other visa-free travelers must get a K-ETA before boarding. The list has grown since 2023, so check your country on the official K-ETA site.?IT DEPENDSEntry & ImmigrationView answer →
• 🛂Can I enter Korea with a one-way ticket?The official pages we checked do not list an onward or return ticket as an entry requirement, but the immigration officer makes the final decision at the border, and airlines can have their own check-in rules.?IT DEPENDSEntry & ImmigrationView answer →

• VisitKorea: Visa & Travel Requirements
• K-ETA (Korea Electronic Travel Authorization)
• K-ETA: Application guide

Requirements differ by nationality, visa type and route. Confirm with the Korean embassy or consulate, your airline and any transit country.