The South Korean Ministry of Justice announced on July 1 that the measure of waiving visa fees for group tourists from six countries including China and Vietnam will be extended until December 31.
According to Yonhap, this is one of the follow-up measures introduced by the South Korean government after the 11th national tourism strategy expansion meeting. The measures are applicable to group tourists from six countries: China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, India, and Cambodia.
The South Korean Ministry of Justice stated that last year, approximately 790,000 foreigners entered South Korea with group visas, a roughly 39% increase compared to the previous year. At the same time, the proportion of those who left the group and illegally resided elsewhere after entering South Korea was only 0.07%, which is more than half less than the previous year.
Since September 29 last year, South Korea has implemented a temporary visa-free policy for Chinese tour groups, which will continue until June 30 this year. Tour groups consisting of three or more people from China can enter South Korea without a visa, with a maximum stay of 15 days. Jeju Island continues to maintain the current visa-free policy, allowing individual and group tourists to enter without a visa and stay for up to 30 days.
Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao pointed out on July 1 that when the South Korean government announced this pilot program last March, it anticipated that the number of Chinese tourists visiting South Korea could exceed 1 million. The government hoped to use this opportunity to boost South Korea's economy and improve relations between South Korea and China.
Previously, China implemented a visa-free policy for South Korea in November 2024. Since then, the interest of South Korean tourists in traveling to China has significantly increased. According to reports cited by Xinhua News Agency in August 2025, data from several Chinese tourism companies and platforms shows that both Chinese tourists visiting South Korea and South Korean tourists visiting China are experiencing growing popularity.
