Before you start

An Alien Registration Card, physical or mobile, for a full account
A Korean mobile number in your own name, matching the ARC exactly
Proof of your Incheon address if the ARC address is out of date
A document proving the account's purpose — payroll, enrolment or a lease

Step-by-step

1
Open a passport-only account first only if you must
Shinhan, Woori, Hana and KB branches with a foreign desk will often open a limited account on a passport for receiving cash. It cannot transfer, cannot bank online and cannot remit abroad. Useful as a stopgap; not a substitute for the real thing.
In personWho: You, at a branch with a foreign or global deskSame dayFree
2
Get the ARC and a Korean number in your name first
The chain is circular if you attack it in the wrong order: the account wants a Korean number for identity verification, and postpaid phone plans want the ARC and often a Korean account. The order that works is ARC, then a prepaid or MVNO line in your own name, then the full account.
In personWho: You3–6 weeks for the ARC
3
Use a branch that sees foreign customers daily
The Songdo international business district and the Global Campus area have branches staffed for exactly this, and the difference between a smooth half hour and an unexplained refusal is often which branch you walk into. Bring the ARC, passport, Korean phone and a small opening deposit, and ask for the foreign or global desk by name.
In personWho: YouSame day, 30–60 minutesFree to open
4
Clear the limited-transaction cap in the same appointment
Anti voice-phishing rules open new accounts capped around ₩1 million a day for ATM withdrawals and transfers. Producing an employment certificate, payslip, tuition invoice or lease is what lifts it. Bring one to the opening appointment and you often avoid the cap altogether rather than returning later.
In personWho: YouImmediate to several weeksFree
5
Take a check card and set up transit payment
A check card debits your account directly and is accepted almost everywhere. Korea is close to cashless and foreign-issued cards are declined more often than newcomers expect — at kiosks, transit machines and delivery apps in particular. Many check cards include the transit function; ask for one that does.
In personWho: YouSame visitUsually free
6
Arrange remittance documentation before you need it
Sending earned income abroad from a Korean bank needs documentary evidence of the source, and the ceilings and evidence requirements are revised periodically. Specialist services are cheaper for ordinary sums but still require a fully verified account. Ask your branch what they want the first time, not on a deadline.
Mobile appWho: YouOngoing

Documents you’ll need

Alien Registration Card, or mobile ARC
Original passport
Korean mobile number registered in your own name
Proof of address if it differs from the ARC
Proof of purpose: employment certificate, payslip, enrolment letter or lease

Things most newcomers don’t know

Every new account in Korea starts capped, and the remedy is a piece of paper rather than patience.

Anti voice-phishing rules standardised a limited-transaction account capping ATM and transfers at roughly ₩1 million a day. Newcomers read it as a foreigner restriction and wait for it to expire. It does not expire — an employment certificate, lease or tuition invoice handed to the branch is what removes it, and bringing one to the opening appointment often prevents it being applied at all.

Source: Financial Supervisory Service; bank limited-account notices

The name on your phone account must match the ARC character for character.

Real-name verification compares your name, birth date, phone number and registration number against carrier records as strings. A middle name on one and not the other, or a hyphen placed differently, produces a failure with an error message that explains nothing. Because the phone contract is normally created last, it is the one to get right at the counter.

Source: community-reported

Where you bank in Incheon changes the experience more than which bank you choose.

Branches in Songdo's international district and near the Global Campus process foreign customers constantly and have the forms, the English and the discretion ready. A neighbourhood branch in an older district may genuinely never have done one, and the outcome can be a polite refusal with no reason given. It is worth travelling across the city for the first appointment.

Source: community-reported

A Korean check card is close to mandatory, not merely convenient.

Korea is one of the most card-dependent economies in the world and the usual expat assumption inverts: it is the foreign card that fails, at transit top-up machines, unmanned kiosks, delivery apps and small restaurants. Cash is a poor fallback because many places handle it badly now. Get the check card issued at the account-opening appointment.

Source: community-reported

Common mistakes to avoid

Expecting a full, transfer-capable account on a passport before the ARC arrives.
Waiting out the roughly ₩1 million daily cap instead of producing a proof-of-purpose document.
A name mismatch between passport, ARC and phone contract breaking real-name verification.
Trying to open the first account at a branch that rarely sees foreign customers.
Relying on a foreign card for daily spending and transit top-ups.

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