(2020) How to Apply for Single / Multiple Entry South Korea Visa for Filipino Tourists or Visitors

1. Philippine Passport. Make sure that your passport is valid for more than 6 months prior to your intended travel date, it has your signature, filled out emergency contact page, and has at least two (2) blank pages.
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2. Photocopy of current Philippine Passport bio page. This is found on page 2 (the part where your passport photo and other info are shown).
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3. If applicable, previous Philippine Passport(s) You only need to submit this if you have traveled abroad within the last 5 years.
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4. If applicable, original and photocopy of all your OECD visas for the past 5 years. If you have been to any of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development or OECD countries in the past 5 years as a tourist, make sure to submit the original and photocopy(ies) of the relevant visas and arrival stamps. (UPDATE: As of 2019, even if Japan is part of OECD countries, it is NO longer considered as an example due to several cases of applicants passing fake Japan visas.)
   • Doing this will help expedite the processing time of your visa.
   • When I said ‘original’, this will mean that you will have to submit the passport(s) that contains the OECD visas and arrival stamps (no matter if they are your old or current passport[s]).
   • Only used visas are counted.
   • It is said that you are NO longer required to submit an ITR if you have traveled at least once to OECD member countries in the past 5 years — or have traveled to South Korea for more than two times within the last 4 years.
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5. A duly accomplished South Korea Visa Application Form.
   • Download the application form here: PDF or Word File.
   • Properly fill the form by hand with your information in CAPITAL LETTERS, yes, even your email address. (However, it seems that some tour offices require it to be printed; so best to prepare both versions to be sure).
     • Erasures are NOT allowed and you should also NOT write outside the boxes.
     • Leave all spaces blank if they are not applicable to you. (You can also put N/A, but since the travel agencies will re-check your documents, you can leave it blank at first so that you won’t waste any paper in case you filled something incorrectly. If everything is fine, put N/A on fields that are not applicable to you.)
     • There is a part in Section 2 that asks for “Confirmation of Visa Issuance”. Just leave it blank or put N/A because this is basically info that’s only issued in Korea (most likely for Koreans only).
   • There are sections here that ask for your address/hotel in South Korea as well as your intended date of entry and period of stay…
     

     This does NOT mean that you are required to book your airline and hotels beforehand because the embassy does NOT require applicants to book it before approval — nor do they require you to submit booking documents related to them.

     That being said, once your South Korea visa is approved, check out Momondo, Kayak, or Skyscanner to look for the best flight deals. As for hotel bookings, it’s best to do it with Booking.com or Agoda.com. With them, you can reserve a hotel with NO pre-payment and you can even cancel the booking a day before your arrival with NO cancellation charges at all.

6. 1 Passport-sized photo. This should be around 35mm x 45mm, colored, and against a white background. Paste this on your South Korea visa application form.
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7. Optional: cover letter and itinerary. These are NOT required, but it’s always good practice to prepare them.
   • However, if you are a freelancer or if you have missing documents that you can’t submit such as an ITR, a Certificate of Employment, etc. — it is therefore a MUST that you submit a cover letter to the embassy to explain your situation.
   • As for the itinerary, there have been some cases wherein some applicants were asked to submit a rough draft of their South Korea itinerary; so it’s best to prepare this just in case.
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8. If applicable, photocopy of eligibile BDO or BPI credit card and latest original credit card account statement. The South Korean Embassy is currently holding a promo wherein eligible BDO and BPI credit cardholders can acquire multiple-entry visas — and they will also be exempted from submitting some required financial documents. Moreover, the embassy announced that this promo will last until December 31, 2019. Thanks to this promo, I got a 5-year multiple-entry visa (I submitted my BDO Platinum credit card). For more info on this, see here.
   • These are the cards that are qualified:
     • BDO Gold Cardholders will get multiple-entry visa valid for 3 years: Gold Visa Credit Card, Gold MasterCard Credit Card, Gold UnionPay Credit Card, Gold JCB Credit Card
     • BDO Elite Cardholders will get multiple-entry visa valid for 3 to 5 years: Platinum Visa Credit Card, Titanium/Platinum and World Elite MasterCard Credit Card, Gold/Platinum/Cathay Pacific and American Express Charge Cards issued by BDO, Diamond UnionPay Credit Card, Diners Club Premiere
     • BPI Gold Master Cardholders will get multiple-entry visa valid for 3 years: BPI SkyMiles Platinum Master Card
     • BPI Amore Visa Platinum cardholders will get multiple-entry visa valid for 3 to 5 years.
     • Gold BPI Express Teller Debit Cardholders will get multiple-entry visa to Korea valid for 3 to 5 years
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   • The following financial documents are NO longer required for submission, as long as you have at least one of the credit cards above:
     • Original personal bank certificate.
     • Photocopy of your ITR (and/or Form 2316).
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   • If you receive your credit card statements through email, you should visit the bank to acquire the original copy of the statement. Printed copy of the emailed account statement will NOT be accepted. And yes, you can blur out or hide the numbers on your credit card photocopy when submitting.
   • Supplementary cardholders of the above cards are allowed BUT only if you are an immediate family member (spouse, child, parent). Also, take note that this does not mean that you are automatically issued a multiple-entry visa. Of course, issuance is still subject to the embassy’s decision upon reviewing your whole application.
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9. Proof of income or financial stability. The requirements for this differ depending on your occupation. But if in case you are a student, a minor, or a person who has no income, refer to section (B).
   • For employed persons.
     • Original personal bank certificate: this must indicate your account type, current balance, account opening date and 6 months average balance (ADB).
       • You are exempt from submitting this if you hold eligible BDO or BPI cards as mentioned in #6 above.
     • Original or certified true copy of bank statements/passbook for the last 3 months.
     • Original Certificate of Employment: this must be printed on your company’s official letterhead and must contain details of your officer or employer’s address, HR landline number, HR email address, your position, your hiring date, and your salary.
     • Photocopy of your ITR (or Form 2316)
     • UPDATE: Starting July 2018, the company alphalist is no longer required — BUT, it may be requested as an additional document for some applicants under the discretion of the embassy. Meanwhile, if you can’t submit a Company Alphalist, you must submit an explanation letter — better if it’s issued by your company.
     • If you do NOT have an ITR or any of the other requirements above, write a simple letter explaining why you’re unable to submit them (examples: you’re newly employed so you don’t have an ITR, etc.).
       • The only time you are exempt from submitting an ITR is if you have traveled to OECD countries countries in the past 5 years or if you hold eligible BDO or BPI cards as mentioned in #6 above.
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   • For self-employed / business persons.
     • Original personal bank certificate: this must indicate your account type, current balance, account opening date and 6 months average balance (ADB).
       • You are exempt from submitting this if you hold eligible BDO or BPI cards as mentioned in #6 above.
     • If you own a business, submit photocopies of your Business Registration issued by DTI / SEC, the company ITR, and Business Permit or Mayor’s Permit.
     • If you’re a freelancer, provide latest photocopy of your ITR (or Form 1701A) with corresponding payment receipt from BIR-authorized bank and proof of work (examples: screenshots of your work, letter from clients, proof of payments for your work, etc.).
     • If you do NOT have an ITR, write a simple letter explaining why you’re unable to submit it (examples: if you are a new business, a new self-employed person, you are being taxed in another country, etc.)
       • The only time you are exempt from submitting an ITR is if you have traveled to OECD countries countries in the past 5 years or if you hold eligible BDO or BPI cards as mentioned in #6 above.
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   • For retirees.
     • Original personal bank certificate: this must indicate your account type, current balance, account opening date and 6 months average balance (ADB).
       • You are exempt from submitting this if you hold eligible BDO or BPI cards as mentioned in #6 above.
     • Original or certified true copy of bank statements/passbook for the last 3 months.
     • Photocopy of your senior citizen ID.
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   • For unemployed persons.
     • Given the way the Embassy of South Korea presents its requirements for visa applicants, it’s best that you acquire a guarantor/sponsor who can provide an ITR. Refer to section (B) below for this.
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   • For students, minors, housewives, ‘househusbands’, etc.
     • Refer to section (B) below.
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     TIP: Don’t have an ITR? It’s best that you start filing and paying your taxes as early as NOW — after all, a lot of embassies (not only South Korea) require an ITR. So if you’re looking for a hassle-free experience for all your tax-related matters (no matter if you’re newly-registered to BIR or not), you should sign up with Taxumo who will take care of everything for you. (Sign up with my code PHTAX and you can get a discount on their plans as well as a FREE 1-month trial!)

This kind of application is applicable for students, minors, unemployed persons, husband/wife (if one of you will be supporting the other), self-employed persons/freelancers (who can’t provide an ITR and have no strong reason why they can’t submit it) or just about any person who will take on a sponsor. This also applies to anyone who would have a company/agency to sponsor the trip.

For submitting the necessary requirements, simply submit the requirements listed in section (A), numbers #1 to #6. And when it comes to (#8) Proof of income or financial stability, you should ask these documents from your guarantor/sponsor as dependent on their profession or occupation — this could be your mom, dad, brother, sister, friend, boyfriend, girlfriend, relative, etc.

Take note though that there are no guarantees of approval if your guarantor is NOT a family member of yours. In fact, it is said that it’s a lot better to have family sponsoring you.

Moving on, you should also submit the following…

9. Sponsor/Guarantee letter. This is a simple letter written by your sponsor indicating how he/she will cover the costs of your South Korea trip.
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10. Photocopy of sponsor/guarantor’s passport. Provide a photocopy of the bio page only; if not, it can be a photocopy of any government-issued ID.
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TIP: If your sponsor is your brother/sister, you must also submit their birth certificate to the embassy.

ADDITIONAL NOTES:

• If you are personally invited by a South Korean…
  • …resident, you must submit an invitation letter and a photocopy of his/her passport or authentication ID
  • …national, you must submit an invitation letter and photocopy of his/her passport or ID card.
  • …company, you must submit an invitation letter and a photocopy of the Korean company’s business permit.
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• If you are married, submit a photocopy of your NSO Marriage Certificate.
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• If you are a student, submit the following:
  • Original school certificate.
  • Photocopy of your school ID.
  • Photocopy of your NSO-issued birth certificate.
  • Your parents’ or your sponsor’s supporting financial documents (depending on their occupation refer to the list in section (A) under #8.)
    • If your parents are your sponsor, provide photocopy of NSO-issued marriage certificate.
    • If your sponsor is other than your parents, explain your relationship with that person through a cover letter.

The South Korean Embassy only issues multiple-entry visas under certain conditions. Currently, there are 2 ways to avail this….

FIRST, by being a frequent South Korea traveler. Basically, it is said that if you have visited South Korea for more than 4 times in the past 2 years OR if you have visited South Korea for more than 10 times in total (with at least 1 of the visits done within the past 2 years), then you are suitable for a multiple-entry application. (For more details, see here).

SECOND, via the BDO/BPI promo. Basically the embassy has implemented a promotion wherein eligible BDO and BPI credit cardholders can acquire multiple-entry visas when they apply for a South Korea visa (along with this, they will also be exempted from submitting a bank certificate and ITR). However take note that this does not mean that you are automatically issued a multiple-entry visa. Of course, issuance is still subject to the embassy’s decision upon reviewing your whole application.

The embassy announced that this promo will last until December 31, 2019. Thanks to this promo, I got a 5-year multiple-entry visa (I submitted my BDO Platinum credit card). For more info on this, see here.

The eligible cards are:

• BDO Gold Cardholders will get multiple-entry visa valid for 3 years: Gold Visa Credit Card, Gold MasterCard Credit Card, Gold UnionPay Credit Card, Gold JCB Credit Card
• BDO Elite Cardholders will get multiple-entry visa valid for 3 to 5 years: Platinum Visa Credit Card, Titanium/Platinum and World Elite MasterCard Credit Card, Gold/Platinum/Cathay Pacific and American Express Charge Cards issued by BDO, Diamond UnionPay Credit Card, Diners Club Premiere
• BPI Gold Master Cardholders will get multiple-entry visa valid for 3 years
• BPI SkyMiles Platinum Master Card and BPI Amore Visa Platinum cardholders will get multiple-entry visa valid for 3 to 5 years.
• Gold BPI Express Teller Debit Cardholders will get multiple-entry visa to Korea valid for 3 to 5 years.

Therefore, to avail this promo you just need to submit the standard requirements in either section (A) or (B) (as dependent on your situation) plus these: the qualified BDO or BPI credit card, photocopy of said credit card, and latest original credit card account statement.

Take note that if you receive your credit card statements through email, you should visit the bank to acquire the original copy of the statement. Printed copy of the emailed account statement will NOT be accepted. And yes, you can blur out or hide the numbers on your credit card photocopy when submitting.

Supplementary cardholders of the above cards are also allowed BUT only if you are an immediate family member (spouse, child, parent).