Visa-free entry to 8 countries including Japan, Taiwan, and Macao to resume from next month (Update)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Byeon Seon-jin] The government has resumed visa-free entry without a time limit for eight countries, including Japan, Taiwan, and Macao, starting next month.

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) received a report from the Ministry of Justice on the 19th regarding the resumption plan for visa-free entry allowing nationals of eight countries (regions) to enter Korea without a visa. The countries where visa-free entry is being resumed include three Asian regions: Japan, Taiwan, and Macao, as well as five Pacific island countries: Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Micronesia, Samoa, and Tonga. All of these countries have also resumed visa-free entry for Korean nationals entering their territories.

The government had temporarily allowed visa-free entry for Japan, Taiwan, and Macao from August until the end of this month, but had maintained the suspension of visa-free entry for the five Pacific island countries. With this measure, the visa-free entry system will apply to 91 countries that had suspended visa-free entry to Korea since the COVID-19 pandemic.

The total number of countries eligible for visa-free entry to Korea is now 112, marking the lifting of the domestic visa-free entry suspension after two and a half years.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.