Korean permanent residence for $500,000 and five Korean hires
The F-5-5 skips the language exam and the income test. What it asks for instead is a real, staffed company.
Most foreigners wait five years on another visa before Korea will consider them for permanent residence. The F-5-5 shortcuts that for people who put at least $500,000 into a Korean company under the Foreign Investment Promotion Act and keep five Korean nationals on the payroll. These are the rules as they stood in September 2026.
Who it suits
Built for founders, not passive investors
This isn't a buy-an-apartment program. The money goes into a registered foreign-invested company that you own, and only the investor personally qualifies, not a manager a parent company sends over.
If you'd rather live in Korea without running a business, the F-1-D remote work visa or five-year F-5-1 route fits better.
The requirements
F-5-5
The F-5-5 visa is for foreign investors who make a significant financial contribution to the South Korean economy. Applicants must invest at least $500,000 USD in a local business and employ at least 5 South Koreans for 6 months, in compliance with investment laws.
- Government cost
- $100
- Processing time
- ~60 days
- Timeline
- Permanent
- Difficulty
- Hard
Key requirements
- Investment of at least $500,000 USD in a South Korean business
- Employment of at least 5 South Korean nationals for a minimum of 6 months
- Compliance with the Foreign Investment Promotion Act
The numbers that decide it
$500,000
Minimum investment
set in U.S. dollars
5
Korean nationals on staff
full time
6 months
Employment before you apply
per Korean immigration firms
₩100M
D-8 investor visa minimum
about $73,600, Sept. 2026
10%
Company stake for a D-8-1
of capital stock
2 years
Longest trip abroad on F-5
without a re-entry permit
The path
From company setup to a permanent card in five steps
- File a foreign investment notification with KOTRA or a foreign exchange bank, then wire the capital.
- Incorporate, register with the tax office and register as a foreign-invested company. Invest KOREA puts the whole setup at about two weeks.
- Get a D-8 investor visa at a Korean consulate, or apply for a change of status if you're already in Korea.
- Hire five Korean nationals full time, enrolled in the four national insurances, and keep them for six months.
- Apply for the F-5-5 with your company registration, the insurance subscriber list and your employees' income records.
You can scout first: Americans get up to 90 days visa-free for business meetings, and the K-ETA is waived for U.S. citizens through December 2026.
Three ways to lose the card
Pull the money out and the status can go with it: Korean law lets immigration revoke permanent residence granted on the condition of keeping an investment. Stay out of Korea more than two years without a re-entry permit and it lapses. And residence obtained by fraud, including a paper company with no real staff, can be canceled.
Life on an F-5
What permanent residence gives you and your family
No more renewals
The F-5 has no time limit, so there are no extensions to file, and you can work in most sectors. Local voting follows after three years.
Your spouse and kids
While you're on the D-8, your spouse and unmarried children hold F-3 dependent status, valid as long as your D-8. Once you're a permanent resident, they can move toward their own F-5-4, which firms say generally follows two years on F-2.
Health coverage and tax
F-5 holders join National Health Insurance right away. Korea taxes residents on worldwide income. However, for your first five years out of 10, foreign income is taxed only if a Korean entity pays it or you bring it into Korea.
Your U.S. passport
Permanent residence doesn't touch it. Naturalizing does: new citizens generally have to renounce their old nationality within a year, and business investors aren't among the exceptions.
Partners for the money and the move
Beacon Global Advisors
Financial Planning
Private wealth management for Americans living abroad, including keeping access to U.S. investment and retirement accounts like IRAs and 401(k)s after you move.
Moneycorp
Currency Exchange
A currency and international payments firm. Useful for converting a six-figure investment from dollars to won, and for regular transfers after that.
MyExpatTaxes
U.S. Expat Tax Service
U.S. tax filing for Americans abroad: the federal return you still owe every year and the foreign-account forms that come with Korean bank accounts.
Hunter Schultz
Healthcare Coach
A healthcare coach who builds a personal care plan for your destination, including how you're covered while you're still on the D-8.
ExpatInsure
Global Health Insurance
Expatsi's international health insurance partner, arranging private coverage for the months before a public plan applies to you.
Quick answers
F-5-5 questions, answered
Can Korea take away F-5-5 permanent residence?
Yes. Korean law allows revocation when permanent residence was granted on the condition of keeping an investment and the investment isn't kept, when it was obtained by fraud, and after certain crimes. It also lapses if you stay abroad past the re-entry deadline.
How long can a Korean permanent resident stay outside Korea?
Up to two years from the day you leave without a re-entry permit. Stay away longer without one and the status is lost. A Korean relocation guide says you can ask for a three-month extension from abroad before the deadline if something keeps you away.
How does Korea tax an American investor who lives there?
Korean tax residents are taxed on worldwide income. For foreigners who've lived in Korea five years or less out of the previous 10, foreign income counts only when a Korean entity pays it or it's brought into Korea. After that, all worldwide income is taxable in Korea, and you still file a U.S. return every year.
Can I apply for the F-5-5 as soon as I invest?
Not usually. Korean immigration firms describe the path as investing and setting up the company, getting a D-8 investor visa, then keeping five full-time Korean employees for six months before applying. One firm says no specific prior visa is required, so confirm your own case with the immigration office before you plan around it.
Do I have to give up U.S. citizenship to live in Korea permanently?
No. Permanent residence doesn't require renouncing anything, so you keep your U.S. passport. Only naturalizing as a Korean citizen does: new citizens generally have to renounce their previous nationality within one year, with exceptions for groups such as outstanding talent, spouses of Koreans, adoptees and elderly compatriots.
Can my spouse and children come with me?
Yes. While you hold a D-8 investor visa, your spouse and unmarried children can hold F-3 dependent status, which lasts as long as your D-8. After you become a permanent resident, they can apply for their own F-5-4, which Korean immigration firms say generally follows two years on F-2 status.
How much do you need to invest to get Korean permanent residence as an investor?
At least US$500,000, invested in a Korean company under the Foreign Investment Promotion Act, and you also have to employ five or more Korean nationals. The threshold is set in U.S. dollars. The D-8 investor visa most people hold first needs only 100 million won (about $73,600 in September 2026), so check that your plan clears the higher F-5-5 bar.
Do I need to speak Korean for the F-5-5?
No. F-5-5 applicants are exempt from the Korean language requirement that applies to general permanent residence, and they're also exempt from the income test. Korean immigration firms add that an overseas criminal record certificate isn't required for this category.
Other ways to live in South Korea
Korea's F-1-D visa: up to three years in Korea on a paycheck from home
Since June 30, 2026, the income bar depends on your age and where you'll live. Here's what Americans need, what it costs and how to apply.
South Korea's F-5-1: permanent residence after five years of Korean work
The status that frees you from employer sponsorship, and the 2026 income, exam and paperwork rules Americans have to clear to get it.
Plan the company, then the visa
An Expatsi advisor can walk through whether an F-5-5 fits your money, your business idea and your family, and who you'll need on your side.
Why not you?