Family Visitor (F1)

Scope of activity

You need F1 visa to see family members, live with them, or assist someone with housework, etc.

F1 visa holders cannot work but there are exceptions like the seasonal work and regional specific visa.

The period of stay is up to 2 years and can be extended.

 

Subtypes

F1 visa has subtypes according to why you visit and who you visit.

• F1-11: Spouse and minor children of H-2 visa holders
• F1-12: Spouse and minor children of F2-7 or F2-99 visa holders
• F1-13: Parents of minor student
• F1-14: Adopted foreigners
• F1-15: Parents of excellent talents, investors, master's & doctoral students and spouse
• F1-16: Spouse and minor children of recognized refugee
• F1-21: Housework assistant of A1, A2 visa holders
• F1-22: Housework assistant of high-value investors
• F1-23: Housework assistant of high-tech investors
• F1-24: Housework assistant professional workers
• F1-3: Non-family inmate of A1, A2, A3 visa holders
• F1-5: Parents and family member of marriage immigrants
• F1-6: Marriage immigrant to dispose of household after divorce
• F1-7: Naturalization applicants
• F1-8: Korea-born children of legitimate stayers
• F1-9: Spouse, minor children and parents of F4 visa holders *Parents of children who are attending elementary, middle, hight school or exempted are also included.
• F1-72: Spouse and minor children of F5-7 visa applicant with requirements for naturalization met as overseas Korean

 

Requirements for visa issuance and visa change

1. Subtypes available for both

① Spouse and minor children of H-2 visa holders (F1-11)

You don't have to be Korean ethnic.

You can apply for visa without the visa issuance certificate.

Change of status is possible limitedly.

 

② Parents of minor student (F1-13)

Your children must have permission to attend elementary, middle, high schools except free compulsory schools or be attending and you must have financial capability to stay in Korea. Only one person per student is available.

Nationals of countries of most illegal immigrants in Korea have more restrictive financial requirement.

You can apply for visa without the visa issuance certificate.

 

③ Spouse, minor children and parents of F4 visa holders (F1-9)

You don't have to be Korean ethnic.

You can apply for visa without the visa issuance certificate.

Change of status is possible limitedly.

Parents of children who are attending elementary, middle, hight school or exempted can have this visa too.

 

④ Spouse and minor children of F2-7 visa holders (F1-12)

You can apply for F2-71 visa if your spouse as F2-7 visa holder has the annual income more than the GNI per capita last year.

You can apply for visa without the visa issuance certificate.

 

⑤ Spouse and minor children of F2-99 visa holders (F1-12)

You can apply for F2-99 visa issue or change as the spouse and minor children of F2-99 visa holder. But if the immigraion authorities find your application does not meet the requirement of F2-99, they can issue or change to F1-12 visa without your reapplication.

 

⑥ Spouse and minor children of F5-7 visa applicant with requirements for naturalization met as overseas Korean (F1-72)

You can apply for visa without the visa issuance certificate.

Change of status is possible limitedly.

 

2. Subtypes available only for visa issue

① Housework assistant of high-value investors, high-tech investors or housework assistant professional workers (F1-22, 23, 24)

You must be employed as housework assistand of them above.

The visa issuance certificate can be required in some cases.

 

② Parents and family member of marriage immigrants (F1-5)

Parents and family member of foreigner who stay in Korea after marriage with Korean national can apply for F1-5 visa issuance to support childbirth or take care of marriage immigrant, Korean spouse or children. However, the marriage immigrants must be one of two below.

• He or she must be currently married and be a naturalized Korean or permanent resident as F5 visa holder.
• He or she is nurturing children alone after divorce or spouse death. *It is also possible when Korean national is nurturing children alone after divorce or spouse death.

Both of parents of marriage immgrant can apply for visa but other family member can do only when he or she is sibling or children from prior marriage and both parents cannot enter Korea because of death, old aga, disease, etc.

 

③ Parents of excellent talents, investors, master's & doctoral students and spouse (F1-15)

You must be parents of one of them below or spouse. Up to 2 persons can have this visa.

• D5, D7, D8, E1 ~ E7 visa holders whose annual income is more than twice GNI per capita of the last year
• Investors who invested above a certain value and stayed for more than 6 months
• Master's & doctoral students who stayed for more than 6 months

You must have the visa issuance certificate before visa issuance.

 

3. Subtypes available only for visa change

① Marriage immigrant to dispose of household after divorce (F1-6)

You can change to this visa to stay to dispose of the household and divide the property with ex-spouse after divorce.

 

② Naturalization applicants (F1-7)

After you apply for naturalization, you can change to this visa during the review process.

 

③ Spouse and minor children of recognized refugee (F1-16)

The Period of stay is up to 2 years and cannot exceed the period of stay of recognized refugee as F2-4 visa holder.

 

Grant of status of stay

A child born of F2, D3, E9, E10, F4, H2, F5-7, F2-4 holders in Korea can have F1 visa.