You’ve landed, unpacked, and started a job or a semester. Then the small walls start appearing. The bank asks for your registration card. A phone shop asks for it. An app wants a “foreigner registration number” before it will let you pay. Everyone assumes you already have one.
That card is the Alien Registration Card, or ARC (외국인등록증). Since 2023 the card itself is printed “Residence Card”, but almost everyone, including banks and landlords, still calls it the ARC. Getting one is not hard, but it has a deadline, a booking system, and one office change in Seoul this autumn that older guides miss. This is the version I give friends who move here.
Who needs an ARC, and by when
If you plan to stay in Korea for more than 90 days, you must register within 90 days of the day you entered. That’s the rule in the Immigration Act (출입국관리법), and it applies to students, workers, spouses of Koreans, and working-holiday visitors alike. Tourists on a short visa-free stay don’t register, and a few statuses, such as diplomats, are exempt.
Don’t treat the 90 days as a target. Appointment slots fill up, and registering late means a fine (과태료) that grows the longer you wait. Most people book their appointment in their first week or two.
What to bring
The basic set is the same for everyone:
- Your passport.
- The application form (통합신청서). It’s available at the office, or you can print it from HiKorea and fill it in beforehand.
- One color photo, 3.5 × 4.5 cm, passport style.
- Proof of where you live (체류지 입증서류). A lease, a dormitory confirmation, or a residence confirmation from whoever you’re staying with.
- The fee: ₩35,000. It went up from ₩30,000 when the card got an IC chip, so ignore guides that still quote the old number.
On top of that, you bring the documents for your visa type. Students bring a certificate of enrollment (재학증명서). Workers usually bring the employment contract and their employer’s business registration certificate. The exact list depends on your visa, so check the checklist on HiKorea or ask your school or employer, who have done this many times.
Notice the order: you need an address before you can register. People are sometimes told they can’t rent without an ARC. In practice it runs the other way. You sign a lease or move into a dorm first, and that lease is one of the documents you register with.
Booking and the visit
Registration is done in person at the immigration office that covers your address, because they take your fingerprints and photo. Book a visit through HiKorea (hikorea.go.kr) under “Reservation for visit”. You don’t need a HiKorea account to book; the non-member option verifies you with your passport number. The booking screen shows which office covers your address.
If you’re a university student, ask your international office first. Many universities submit applications for their students as a group, which saves you the trip.
On the day, arrive a little early with everything in one folder. The officer checks your documents, takes your fingerprints, and you pay the fee. The card is usually ready in a few weeks, and the office will tell you when and how to collect it. Keep your receipt until it arrives.
Which Seoul office covers you
Seoul has three immigration offices, divided by district. One of them moved this year. The Seoul Immigration Office left Mok-dong in October 2026 and now works from a new building in Munjeong-dong, Songpa. If a map or an older guide sends you to Mok-dong, it’s out of date.
- Seoul Immigration Office (서울출입국·외국인청), 55 Jeongui-ro, Songpa-gu, about 10 minutes’ walk from Munjeong Station exit 4. Covers Gangnam, Seocho, Songpa, Gangdong, Gwanak, Dongjak, Gwangjin, Seongdong and Yongsan.
- Seoul Southern Immigration Office (서울남부출입국·외국인사무소), 48 Magokseo 1-ro, Gangseo-gu. Covers Mapo, Seodaemun, Yeongdeungpo, Gangseo, Yangcheon, Guro and Geumcheon.
- Sejongno Branch (세종로출장소), Seoul Global Center, 38 Jong-ro, Jongno-gu. Covers Jongno, Jung-gu, Eunpyeong, Dongdaemun, Jungnang, Seongbuk, Gangbuk, Dobong and Nowon.
Outside Seoul, the booking screen will point you to the right office for your address.
Life while you wait
The few weeks between arriving and holding the card are the awkward part. Here is what tends to come up, and how to handle it.
Banking. The big banks want your ARC for a regular account, and most people find it easier to wait for it than to push for a passport-only account. Our guide to opening a bank account in Korea covers what to bring once you have it.
Your phone. A prepaid SIM on your passport works for data and calls. A contract in your own name, and the identity checks that apps and banks run by text message, generally go smoother once you’re registered. See our SIM card guide for the options.
Housing. You can sign a lease before your ARC arrives. What matters is the step after. Once you’re registered, reporting your address to immigration counts the same as a Korean’s move-in registration (전입신고) under tenant-protection law. Together with a fixed date (확정일자) stamped on your lease at the community center, that’s what protects your deposit. More in our guide to renting an apartment in Korea.
Getting sick. Hospitals in Korea will treat you without an ARC. The difference is the bill. Until you’re enrolled in National Health Insurance, you pay the full cost instead of the insured share. Workers at a company that provides insurance are generally enrolled through their employer. Students on a D-2 visa are enrolled from the date of their foreigner registration. Most other residents are enrolled after six months in Korea. If you’ll be uninsured for a while, travel or private insurance is worth having. For finding a doctor who speaks English, see English-speaking hospitals in Seoul.
After the card arrives
Get the mobile version. Since January 2025, registered foreigners aged 14 and over can put their card on their phone through the government’s Mobile ID app (모바일신분증). You need a smartphone in your own name, so prepaid phones with no registered owner don’t work. The mobile card has the same legal effect as the plastic one, and some banks already accept it at the counter.
Report when you move. When you change address, report it within 15 days, either at immigration, at your new community center (주민센터), or online on HiKorea. Report a new passport too. Late address reports can be fined.
Travelling abroad. Registered foreigners on most visa types don’t need a separate re-entry permit if they come back within one year (or before their stay expires, whichever comes first). Permanent residents (F-5) have two years.
If you lose it. Apply for a replacement at your immigration office as soon as you can. The reissue fee is the same ₩35,000.
When you’re unsure. Call the Immigration Contact Center on 1345. It runs on weekdays from 9am to 10pm, with English, Chinese and Korean after 6pm and around 20 languages in daytime hours.
Using your ARC as ID at bars and clubs is its own question, and we cover it in can I use my ARC at clubs in Seoul.
The quick version
If you’re staying longer than 90 days, register within 90 days of arriving. Get your housing sorted first, because proof of address is one of the documents. Book a visit on HiKorea, bring your passport, the form, a 3.5 × 4.5 cm photo, your lease, your visa-specific documents and ₩35,000. In Seoul, check which of the three offices covers your district, and remember the main office is now in Songpa, not Mok-dong. Once the card arrives, add the mobile version, and report any move within 15 days.
Immigration rules and office procedures change, and the documents differ by visa. If the officer asks for something not on this list, that’s normal. Ask what they need, or check with 1345 before you go.
