Overstaying Your Visa in Korea — Risks & What to Do

Your permitted period of stay has expired (or is about to), and you have not extended or changed your status — putting you at risk of fines, an entry ban and deportation.

UrgentImmigration Act (출입국관리법)

Applies to

employee · student · jobseeker · spouse

Quick answer: Overstaying violates the Immigration Act and leads to fines, a re-entry ban (scaled by how long you overstayed) and possible detention and deportation. If you have already overstayed, voluntary departure (자진출국) is usually the safest route — it typically reduces the fine and the entry ban compared with being caught. Resolve status BEFORE it expires whenever possible.

What Korean law says

  1. ·Staying beyond your authorized period without an extension or status change is an illegal stay under the Immigration Act.
  2. ·Penalties include a monetary penalty (범칙금/과태료) that increases with the length of overstay, an entry ban (입국금지) commonly from about 1 year up to 10 years, and deportation (강제퇴거).
  3. ·Voluntary departure (자진출국) — reporting and leaving on your own — generally reduces the fine and shortens or waives the entry ban; some periods have special reduced-penalty programs.
  4. ·Being caught in a crackdown (단속) typically means detention at a foreigner detention centre, forced deportation, and a longer ban.
  5. ·You generally cannot extend or change your visa while overstayed — you must resolve the illegal-stay status first, so acting before expiry is far better.

Required conditions

  1. ·This applies to anyone remaining in Korea past their authorized period of stay.

What to do next

  1. 1Check your stay-until date on your ARC / the e출입국 (HiKorea) system immediately.
  2. 2If it is about to expire, apply for an extension (체류기간 연장) via HiKorea at least a few weeks early.
  3. 3If already overstayed, consult the Immigration Office (1345) or an immigration attorney / 행정사 about voluntary departure vs. any regularization option.
  4. 4Register for voluntary departure (자진출국) to get the reduced fine and shorter ban.
  5. 5Do not work illegally, and keep any evidence that you did not.

Documents to prepare

Passport.Alien Registration Card (ARC).Entry stamp / arrival record.Any extension or appointment confirmation.

Where to go / who to contact

Immigration Office (출입국·외국인청/사무소); HiKorea (hikorea.go.kr); Immigration Contact Center 1345.

Time limit / deadline

Act BEFORE your stay expires — extensions must be filed before the end date. If already overstayed, the sooner you leave voluntarily, the smaller the penalty.

Common mistakes

  1. ·Waiting until after expiry to “sort it out”.
  2. ·Working while overstayed (adds a separate, serious violation).
  3. ·Believing an entry ban is permanent — it is usually time-limited and shorter with voluntary departure.

Sources

These are official Korean government sites — mostly in Korean. Need help in your language? Use the multilingual helplines below, or tap “Get professional help”.

Multilingual helplines: 1345 Immigration (Vietnamese) · 1350 Labor · 1588-0560 Tax (English) · 120 city services

Last checked: 2026-07-12

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Overstaying Your Visa in Korea — Risks & What to Do — KVBiz Law