South Korea WHV: How to apply for your residence card (fka ARC)

Although Korean immigration does not provide an official list of documents to bring, you should be prepared to show the following during your appointment:

• Passport, original and copy
• Proof of address
• Itinerary (travel and work) plan for your working holiday
• ID photo
• Application form (from chapter 2)
• Visa grant notice

You will also pay 30,000 KRW for a government stamp at your appointment.

Proof of address

If you’re a tenant, you can provide your lease agreement. It’s possible that they’ll also ask to see a photocopy of your landlord’s ID, but this is not always the case.

Airbnb and booking.com receipts or confirmations are usually accepted, but it is at the discretion of the immigration agent.

You could also ask your landlord to fill out a confirmation of residence/accommodation. In this case, attach the supporting documents indicated at the bottom of the form.

Travel and work plan

You can provide the one that you had provided as a part of your WHV application. Depending on the agent who receives you, you may be asked to rewrite it onto a new form. An official sample can be found in the Korea WHV application guide.

Application form

The application form can be found on your appointment summary, directly at the immigration office, or here.

This is what it looks like. It is a general form for all types of visa holders, so there are some fields that are not relevant to you.

Check “foreign resident registration”.

As a working holiday maker, you can skip the fields outlined in red.

Sign the form.

The rest is for use by officials only.

Print the documents

If you don’t have your own printer, you can go to Kinkos, a chain of stores offering print and copy services. There are many locations in Seoul.

You can also pay to print directly at the immigration office. If you opt for this, arrive a bit earlier than your appointment time.