Korea Digital Nomad Visa (F-1-D): 2026 Requirements

Korea’s digital nomad visa is the F-1-D, and as of 2026 the requirements come down to three checks: annual income near $66,000 — roughly double Korea’s per-capita national income — at least a year of employment with a company or clients based outside Korea, and private health insurance bought before you arrive. Seoul launched it in 2024 as its answer to Portugal’s and Bali’s nomad permits, and it’s quietly become the least-understood visa category in the country. Below are the exact thresholds immigration checks, what separates freelancers from salaried remote workers, and how the F-1-D compares with visas you already know.

Quick answers

• The F-1-D requires proof of annual income at roughly double Korea’s per-capita gross national income, a threshold the Ministry of Justice recalculates each year and which sat close to $66,000 through 2025 and into 2026.
• You must already work for a company or clients based outside Korea — the visa explicitly bars taking a job with a Korean employer.
• It’s granted for up to one year and can be renewed once, for a maximum stay of two years, with a spouse and children eligible to come along as dependents.

What Is Korea’s Digital Nomad Visa (F-1-D)?

The F-1-D is Korea’s digital nomad visa, introduced on January 1, 2024, for foreigners who want to live in Korea while working remotely for an employer or clients based abroad. It sits in a different bucket than a work visa (E-series) or a long-term residency visa (F-2, F-5) — it’s explicitly temporary, tied to income you earn outside the country, and it does not lead directly to permanent residency. Immigration officers I’ve talked to in Yeoksam describe it as a “guest, not a resident” category, which is the right way to think about it.

F-1-D Workation Visa Korea Requirements: What Actually Gets Checked

The core F-1-D workation visa Korea requirements are income, employment status abroad, insurance, and a clean record. Applicants need at least one year of continuous employment or freelance/contractor history with an entity based outside Korea, documented pay stubs or contracts covering that period, and private health and travel insurance with a minimum coverage level (commonly cited around $100,000 USD, including repatriation) purchased before arrival. There’s also a minimum age of 19 and a standard criminal background check, the same as most long-stay Korean visas.

How Much Do You Actually Need to Earn?

Here’s the number that trips people up: the income floor is not a fixed dollar figure written into law, it’s pegged to roughly 200% of Korea’s Gross National Income per capita from the prior year, recalculated annually by the Ministry of Justice. Through 2025 and heading into 2026 that worked out to income near $66,000 a year — enough to filter out backpackers-with-a-laptop but well within reach for a mid-level remote engineer, designer, or consultant. Because the exact figure shifts every year, I’d never trust a number I read in an old blog post — check the current published threshold on the Korean consulate or Hi Korea site before you assume you qualify.

Is It Actually Competitive With Other Digital Nomad Visas?

Compared with Portugal’s D8 visa or Indonesia’s Bali digital nomad permit, Korea’s F-1-D asks for a noticeably higher income floor and offers a shorter maximum stay — two years versus Portugal’s path toward longer-term residency. What Korea trades for that stricter bar is genuine infrastructure: gigabit apartment internet as standard, a subway system that makes visa-run logistics trivial, and a healthcare system that’s cheap even before insurance kicks in. If your income clears the bar, the day-to-day experience of actually living here beats a lot of the countries with looser paperwork.

Can You Really Live in Korea While Working for a US Company?

Yes, and this is the part the eligibility bullet points don’t explain well. You’ll still owe US tax obligations as a citizen or green card holder regardless of where you live, and Korea has its own tax residency rules that generally kick in once you’ve been physically present more than 183 days in a year — at which point Korean tax residency questions start to matter, and the US-Korea tax treaty is what prevents you from being taxed twice on the same income. None of that is handled by the visa itself; it’s worth a real conversation with an accountant who knows both systems before you commit to a full year.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What are the F-1-D digital nomad visa requirements for 2026?

As of 2026 you need proof of annual income near $66,000 (about 200% of Korea’s prior-year per-capita GNI), at least one year of documented employment or contract work for an entity based outside Korea, private health and travel insurance (commonly around $100,000 in coverage, repatriation included) bought before arrival, and a clean criminal record. Because the income figure is recalculated every year, confirm the current published threshold before you apply.

Q: What is the income requirement for Korea’s F-1-D workation visa?

It’s set at roughly 200% of the prior year’s Korean per-capita GNI, which worked out to approximately $66,000 annually through 2025 into 2026 — but the Ministry of Justice recalculates this figure every year, so always check the current published number.

Q: Can I work for a Korean company on the F-1-D visa?

No. The F-1-D specifically requires that your income come from an employer, clients, or contracts based outside Korea; taking a domestic Korean job breaks eligibility.

Q: How long can I stay in Korea on the F-1-D visa?

The initial grant is for up to one year, and it can be renewed once, for a combined maximum stay of two years.

Q: Can my family come with me on the F-1-D visa?

Yes — a spouse and children can be included as dependents on the same application, provided you meet the insurance and documentation requirements for each of them.