Marriage Migrant

From the MOJ manual · as of 2026-07-31Who qualifies & how

Eligibility. Marriage migrants: the spouse of a Korean national with a marriage validly registered in Korea (F-6-1); a parent raising a minor child born of a marriage (including de facto) with a national (F-6-2); a person who was married to a national in Korea but cannot continue the marriage due to the spouse's death, disappearance or another cause not attributable to the applicant (F-6-3).

Work rights. Not stated as restricted in the manual sections reviewed; F-series residence statuses are treated as free-employment statuses in the MOJ Visa Navigator's work-scope overview.

Duration. Up to 3 years per grant; the initial visa is a 90-day single entry (multiple for US nationals), followed by alien registration and extension in Korea.

Extension. Extendable while the marriage (or the F-6-2/F-6-3 basis) continues; F-6-3 requires proof that the marriage breakdown was not attributable to the applicant (e.g., court rulings).

Pathways. F-6 → F-5 (spouse-of-national category after 2 years of residence, subject to the common F-5 requirements); simplified naturalization is available separately after 2 years of marriage residence.

ChecklistRequired documents

• Visa application form, photo, passport (6+ months validity) and copy, fee
• Korean spouse: invitation letter, personal guarantee, basic certificate, marriage-relation certificate, family-relation certificate, resident register (all detailed versions, within 3 months)
• Foreign spouse: marriage background statement, home-country marriage certificate, criminal-record certificate (within 3 months), health certificate
• Korean spouse: health certificate (public-service checkup form) and International Marriage Guidance Program certificate (both waived for exempt couples, e.g., with a common child or long cohabitation abroad)
• Income-requirement documents: past-year income of the inviter at or above the annually published threshold by household size (waivable with a common child, 1+ year of cohabitation abroad, or prior F-6 stay); household members in the same resident register may supplement
• Housing documents: residence owned or leased by the Korean spouse or their direct family, matching the resident register
• Communication-ability proof for the foreign spouse: TOPIK level 1+, designated Korean-course completion, or other proof (waived with a common child or prior F-6 stay; otherwise a consular interview decides)

Fees: change of status ₩100,000. The full table with legal citations is on /fees.

→ Guide: F-6 requirements incl. the income table

2026 income thresholds are published as a table by household size in the manual; exact figures vary annually and are not reproduced here.

Official taxonomySubtypes (3)

Who holds itF-6 holders by nationality

TrendMonthly arrivals on the F-6

In 2026-06, 13,860 people entered Korea on an F-6 visa, down 7.2% from a year earlier.