Use the official website or app
K-ETA means Korea Electronic Travel Authorization. Apply through the official website or the official K-ETA mobile app. The homepage carries its own warning about "similar agencies/phishing sites that charge high fees under the pretext of providing K-ETA application agency (or expedited) services". The official K-ETA service does not offer paid expedited approval. Check the website address rather than judging legitimacy by a converted dollar price. Private service charges are separate from the government application fee.
Check the fee and allow enough processing time
The fee is ₩10,000, with an online payment charge added separately, according to the official guide. A decision is "generally within 72 hours" — generally, not guaranteed. A few applications take longer, and a pending application does not satisfy a requirement for approval before boarding. Apply well ahead of the flight: 72 hours is a typical processing time, not a guaranteed deadline.
Member or not
You can apply with or without opening an account, and the fee, the review time and the approval are identical either way. An account lets you check results and update travel details without re-verifying your email each time, and keeps past applications in one place; without one you use the service’s email-verification process. An account is optional.
The seven steps
- Read and accept the application terms.
- Sign in or complete the non-member email verification.
- Enter your passport information exactly as required by the form.
- Enter the requested application and travel details.
- Review your answers carefully before submitting them.
- Pay the application fee.
- Save your application details and check the decision through the official service.
Non-members use email verification at step two and again when retrieving their application.
What it asks for
Use the information on your passport’s identity page: name, date of birth, nationality, passport number and expiry, plus a photograph of you. The FAQ answers two questions applicants keep asking: a photo in a hijab is accepted, and a passport without separate surname and given-name fields can correctly put the whole name in the surname box — keep it if it matches the machine-readable lines. The trip step takes your flight and contact details and your address in Korea; the exact wording of each line is on the form itself.
After approval
An approval is tied to the passport number it was issued against and, the K-ETA guide states, lasts three years or until that passport expires, whichever comes first, across as many trips as you make. If your passport is reissued, apply again using the new passport. Complete a planned renewal before applying. Update changed travel dates, purpose, address and contact details through Update Travel Information. A change of occupation alone does not require a new application. A valid K-ETA used for visa-free entry also provides an exemption from the arrival declaration. The e-Arrival Card is Korea’s online arrival form; check its separate exemption rules for your circumstances.
Check exemptions before applying
The current nationality-based temporary exemption runs through 31 December 2026 in Korean time. Separate exemptions include age-based categories for travellers aged 17 or younger or 65 or older on entry. Check the official eligibility guidance and “Do I need K-ETA travel authorisation?” before applying; other status-based exemptions may also be relevant.
