Non-vaccinated foreigners will no longer be subject to the 7-day quarantine upon arrival in South Korea from June 8.
Han Duck-soo, South Korea’s Prime Minister, announced today that the country will lift its quarantine requirement for unvaccinated travelers starting June 8.
“We will revamp the overseas immigration management system. The 7-day quarantine requirement was applied to unvaccinated people arriving from abroad, but, from June 8, the quarantine requirement will be removed, whether travelers are vaccinated or not,” the Prime Minister said in a press release .
On the same date, the government will also remove air regulations imposed on Incheon International Airport to ensure smooth flight operations, as the restrictions currently in place have caused many inconveniences, such as lack of tickets and increased their price.
Foreign travelers, regardless of their vaccination status, will still be subject to a pre-departure test and then a new PCR test 3 days after their arrival in Korea.
“We will reduce the burden on people due to foreign entry procedures and aviation regulations, but maintain the requirement for PCR or rapid antigen test before entry and PCR test within 3 days of entry to avoid any loopholes in quarantine management,” explains the head of government.
Mandatory Electronic Travel Authorization
Before departing for Korea, citizens of 95 countries, including European states exempt from visas for tourism or short-term business stays, must obtain a K-ETA electronic travel authorization .
For other types of travel, or in the event of a long stay in South Korea, travelers must apply for a visa .
Vaccinated or not, tourists are required to carry out a PCR test, 48 hours before departure, or an antigen test, 24 hours before boarding, then attach the negative result in the government pre-entry system Q-Code .
“The use of the quarantine information pre-entry system (Q-code) is highly recommended by airlines and travel agencies to shorten the waiting time and enable efficient tracking management. It is planned to increase the convenience of using the Q-code by simplifying its content and then to encourage up to 80% of foreign entrants (currently 60%) to use the Q-code to enter the country”, details the Prime Minister.
