Before you start

A passport valid well beyond your intended stay
A long-stay visa matching your actual purpose, generally issued at a consulate abroad
A documented Daegu address — lease, dormitory contract or an employer confirmation letter
Category evidence: employment contract and sponsor filing for work visas; foreign employment, income and private medical cover for F-1-D

Step-by-step

1
Settle the category before you travel
E-7 has occupation-code and salary thresholds; E-2 requires a degree and an apostilled criminal record check obtained at home; D-8 needs a registered Korean entity and capital. Most are issued by a consulate in your country of residence and cannot be converted into from a visa-free entry. Getting it wrong means leaving Korea and restarting.
Via employerWho: You with your employer, university or a Korean consulate2–8 weeksConsular issuance fee, typically KRW 60,000–130,000
2
Book the HiKorea appointment in your first week
Registration appointments are booked at hikorea.go.kr; walk-ins are not accepted. Daegu's office is less overwhelmed than Seoul's, but the February and August university intakes still tighten it. The ninety-day legal deadline runs from entry regardless of slot availability. The multilingual contact centre on 1345 can help.
OnlineWho: YouBook on arrivalFree to reserve
3
Register and apply for the ARC
Attend in person with your passport, application form, a 3.5 × 4.5 cm photo, proof of your Daegu address and category documents. Biometrics are taken at the counter. The fee is KRW 30,000, plus a small charge for postal delivery. Overrunning ninety days attracts a fine that follows you into later applications.
In personWho: YouOne appointment, 30–60 minutesKRW 30,000 plus postage
4
Take the mobile residence card while the plastic is in the post
The physical card takes roughly three to six weeks, longer in peak season. The mobile residence card in the government ID app has been issued since January 2025 and carries the same legal weight as the plastic; banks — including Daegu's own iM Bank — have accepted it for account opening since 21 March 2025, which matters in the gap when everything else is waiting on the card.
Mobile appWho: You3–6 weeksNo further fee
5
Check whether your district opens the regional visa
The Ministry of Justice publishes an annual operating plan for the regional-specialised visa. Nam-gu, Seo-gu and Gunwi-gun in Daegu are on the designated population-decline list. A city or district recommendation can open F-2-R at income and points thresholds below the ordinary route, in exchange for living and working in the region.
In personWho: You with the district office and Daegu Metropolitan CityAnnual quota cycleStandard status-change fee
6
Report changes and start the long route early
Address changes, employer changes and passport renewals are reported to immigration, generally within fourteen days. Staying long term runs through the F-2-7 points visa and then F-5 permanent residence, with TOPIK certification and the KIIP social integration programme feeding both. Daegu's universities run KIIP classes; they take years, so start before you need them.
In personWho: YouOngoing

Documents you’ll need

Passport, original plus a copy of the photo page
Completed integrated application form
One colour photo, 3.5 × 4.5 cm, taken within six months
Proof of your Daegu address — lease, dormitory contract or a signed confirmation letter
Category evidence: employment contract, enrolment certificate, or foreign employment and insurance proof for F-1-D
Tuberculosis screening result, required for some nationalities and categories

Things most newcomers don’t know

Three parts of Daegu sit on the population-decline list, and living in one can change what visa you qualify for.

The regional-specialised visa lets designated local governments recommend foreigners for F-2-R residence at thresholds below the national points route, in return for committing to live and work in the area. Nam-gu, Seo-gu and Gunwi-gun are designated; Suseong-gu, where most professionals gravitate for the schools, is not. Choosing a neighbourhood on reputation alone can quietly choose a harder immigration path.

Source: Ministry of Justice — regional-specialised visa operating plan

Daegu's immigration office is a genuine advantage over Seoul's, and people do not use it.

Appointment scarcity at the Seoul offices is one of the most stressful parts of arriving in Korea, and it is far less acute here. Registration is done at the office covering your registered address, so anyone actually living in Daegu should book locally rather than assuming the capital handles everything. Confirm on HiKorea which office covers your district before booking anything.

Source: HiKorea — Korea Immigration Service

Visa-free entry is a travel permission and never a trial residence.

Ninety days visa-free covers tourism and business meetings. Working on it, including remote work billed to a foreign client, risks fines, departure orders and re-entry bans, and none of that time counts toward any residence clock. The correct order is always category first, then the move — and for the regional route in particular, the recommendation process assumes you have a lawful status to convert from.

Source: Korea Immigration Service; K-ETA portal

Korean-language certification is the real gatekeeper on the whole long-term route.

TOPIK levels and the government's KIIP social integration programme feed the F-2-7 points table, shorten the path to F-5 permanent residence, and appear in the regional visa criteria. They take a year or more of evening classes. People who start thinking about permanent residence in year four find themselves two years behind where they assumed they were, which is entirely avoidable.

Source: Korea Immigration Service — points system and KIIP

Common mistakes to avoid

Treating ninety days visa-free as permission to work or job-hunt.
Assuming appointments and registration must happen in Seoul when your address is in Daegu.
Choosing a neighbourhood without checking whether it is a designated population-decline district.
Assuming your category can be switched into from inside Korea when it requires a consulate abroad.
Leaving TOPIK and KIIP until the year you actually want to apply for F-2 or F-5.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.