PSA: Palawan and Mindanao residents may send their Korean visa application requirements via this postal service starting Feb. 1

Korea is making things easier for tourists!

Now, tourist visa applicants residing in Palawan and Mindanao can submit their requirements without having to go to the Korea Visa Application Center (KVAC) in Taguig.

Through the Postal Visa Application service, select WExpress branches in Mindanao will be accepting visa applications for C-3-9 Tourist Visa (or short-term stays), starting Feb. 1.

Applicants are asked to bring a government ID for verification. Once the requirements are met, they can now pay the P1,000 WExpress service fee and P900 KVAC service fee, which are both non-refundable.

Tourists will receive emails from WExpress and text messages from KVAC to confirm the application and issuance confirmation.

If KVAC finds that there are lacking documents or needs additional documents, the applicant must submit them to the same WExpress branch within seven working days. No additional fee will be collected.

If in case the applicant is not available to submit their requirements to the branch themselves, they can ask family members or co-workers to submit on their behalf with proof of relationship such as a PSA birth certificate or marriage certificate for family members and a copy of company ID or Certificate of Employment for both co-workers.

Since the process takes about 13 days, KVAC recommends applying for a visa at least four weeks before the planned flight date.

In July 2023, the Korean Embassy in the Philippines announced that they would no longer be accepting visa applications or releasing visas in their Taguig office. Instead, submission and release of passports will only be available at KVAC, which started operating on Aug, 29.