Korea Group Visa Fee Waiver 2026: Which 6 Countries, How Much, and Who's Excluded

Bottom line: Nationals of China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, India, and Cambodia who enter Korea on a group tourist visa arranged through a travel agency have the visa issuance fee (US$15, about 22,500 won) waived through December 31, 2026. This waiver does not apply to individual visas — those still pay the fee.

If you didn't know: If your group tour didn't apply the waiver and your travel agency billed you for the fee anyway, you paid an extra 22,500 won per person for nothing. On the other hand, if you assume an individual visa gets the same waiver as a group visa, your application can be rejected or delayed for an unpaid fee.

On July 1, 2026, Korea's Ministry of Justice announced it was extending the group-visa fee waiver for these six nationalities through the end of 2026, as a follow-up measure from the 11th expanded national tourism strategy meeting. The ministry said about 790,000 foreign nationals entered on group visas in 2025, up roughly 39% year on year, though it stopped short of crediting the fee waiver as the sole reason for the increase. The waiver applies strictly to "group tourists" of these nationalities — the same nationality applying for an individual visa is not covered. Some private visa-agency websites advertise a longer waiver for Indian group tourists running through December 31, 2027, which conflicts with the Ministry's single six-country announcement, so confirm the current terms with your travel agency when you apply. Indonesia separately has a visa-free entry scheme for group tourists (May 28 to December 31, 2026) that is a different measure from this fee waiver — don't conflate the two.

This article summarizes official information and is not legal, medical, or financial advice.

Journey stage: Before you go · Verified 2026-11-05