South Korea Visa Photo: Tips for a Successful Application [And a Hassle-Free Visa Photo Tool]

What are visa requirements for South Korea?

If you want to apply for a South Korea Visa, you need to submit some documents to support your visa application. These documents may vary from country to country and the type of visa you are applying for. However, there are some standard documents that everyone has to provide. The documents include:

• South Korea visa application form
• A passport valid for at least six months and a few blank pages
• A photo that is suitable for the requirements of a South Korea Visa photo
• Round-trip flight ticket
• Proof of sufficient funds to cover all the expenses during your stay in South Korea
• Proof of accommodation in South Korea such as a hotel reservation
• Payment of South Korea via fee
• For South Korea student visa
• Reference letter
• Acceptance letter from a university/school
• For South Korea business visa
• Letter from the employer
• Invitation letter from a South Korean company
• For South Korean work visa
• Employment contract

Since there are several types of visa categories and their subcategories, it is possible you need to submit extra documents according to your visa type. Moreover, you may need to provide some other additional documents if the South Korean embassy or consulate requests depending on your trip.

What are the South Korea Visa Photo Requirements?

Sometimes it could be hard to find the right photo for your documents because there are several different requirements for each document’s photo. To make this process easier, Passport Photo Online will guide you. It will give you information about how the photo should be, what are the requirements, which size it should be, and so on. If you are planning to apply for a South Korea visa, you will also need a visa photo that meets the requirements. Before you get your visa photo, first, you need to know what the Korean government requires for a visa photo. Below you will find a detailed explanation of the requirements for a South Korea visa photo:

• The dimensions of visa photos for South Korea should be 35x45mm. The full face should cover 25x35mm of the photo. In this way, your face will be centered in the photo which is one of the most important parts.
• In the visa photo, the background should be white and plain. Fortunately, you don’t need to worry about your background because Passport Photo Online will help you with that. You can take your photo anywhere you want and leave the rest Passport Photo Online. It will replace the background with the one that meets the requirements.
• The main aim of a visa photo is to identify a person so that it is important to apply with a recent photo. It is asked to use a photo that was taken within the last 6 months in the South Korea visa application. 
• The visa photo must be colored, not black and white. 
• In the South Korea visa photo, it is not allowed to smile or open your mouth. You should have a neutral facial expression without any gestures because your face should be natural.
• There shouldn’t be any shadows on your face in the visa photo. The face should be centered and brightened evenly so that the face could be easily seen and identify. You may turn your face towards the window or use additional light. Don’t worry about the background.
• For the right angle, you should place the camera at eye level. You should look at the camera lens directly and turn your body to the camera. Eyes must be open and easily seen.
• Unless you have any medical reasons, you mustn’t wear any glasses, sunglasses, or hats. For religious purposes, you can wear head coverings, however, your face must be visible from the top of your forehead to the bottom of your chin. It means a full face including eyes, eyebrows, nose, chin, mouth, forehead, and cheeks shouldn’t be covered, it is only allowed to cover ears.
• Since the background is white, it is suggested that you not wear white clothes. Student uniform is acceptable.

While taking the right visa photo, you should pay attention to the requirements listed above. Your photo may get rejected if you use the same photo for other documents such as a passport, driver’s license issued before 6 months, or the photo doesn’t match with your current appearance, for instance, significant changes of face or hair color might be a problem. Keep these requirements in your mind just in case. With Passport Photo Online, you will easily get your perfect South Korea visa photo just in seconds, even without leaving home!

How to apply for a South Korea Visa

After you choose the right visa type, there are four ways that you can apply for a visa. These are:

1. e-Visa Application via the Visa Portal

To apply for a South Korea e-Visa through the Visa Portal, firstly you should fill in the. application form online. You can find the e-form on the Visa Portal website. You have to provide some information such as personal details, passport information, details of your visit, etc. For application, you will also need a proper visa photo.

In this step, Passport Photo Online will be with you to get the perfect and proper one! The application form for the South Korea Visa can be found on the Visa Portal website. The application form must be submitted by the applicants or their sponsor on their behalf. After you or your sponsor fill in the application form, the next step is to pay the visa fee. The visa fee varies depending on the number of entries, for instance, if you want to have a multiple entry visa, you need to pay 90 USD, on the other hand, you need to pay 40 USD for a single entry visa up to 90 days.

The fee for a South Korean Visa should be paid in USD. When the payment is completed, you can submit your application. Then, you need a confirmation invitation from your sponsor who may be a corporation or an individual in South Korea. Then, your visa application will be viewed by visa officials after that you may check your results.

The last step is printing and sending the confirmation of e-visa issuance before arriving in Korea. If your sponsor is the one who applies for the visa, the procedure is slightly different. Firstly, the sponsor should log into the website and complete the application form then they should pay the visa fee. After paying the fee, the visa officials will view the application. When you get the confirmation of the results of the application, the sponsor should print and send the confirmation of visa issuance to you.

During your application process, you will also need to provide some documents, however, they might change which type of visa you are applying for, but here are some standard documents include the visa application form, images of your passport, a digital photo that matches the photo requirements, visa fee and soft copies of other required documents according to visa type.

2. Visa Application via Korean Diplomatic Missions Abroad

If you want to make a visa application via Korean diplomatic missions abroad, first you should go to the closest Korean embassy or consulate in your country of residence. You may need to make an appointment beforehand. The application must be submitted by the individuals themselves or a visa agency on their behalf.

The standard required documents are a valid passport, visa application form, photo, visa fee (in USD), and required documents of your stay such as hotel reservation and plane tickets. Every document has importance for this process so all of them should be proper, especially the visa photo, there are some special requirements when it comes to it.

However, it is easier than it seems to have the perfect visa photo even at home, thanks to Passport Photo Online. You will be guided by Passport Photo Online until you get the perfect visa photo. After your submission of the application, it will be viewed by a visa consultant. Then, your visa will be issued and you can get ready to enjoy the time you are going to spend in South Korea.

3. Confirmation of Visa Issuance Application via the Visa Portal

Confirmation of visa issuance via the Visa Portal is a type of visa application made by the sponsor or a travel agency in the name of the actual applicant without going to the Korean immigration office. For confirmation of visa issuance, the application form must be filled by the sponsor or the travel agency through the online portal.

Once the visa application is approved, the applicants can get their visa from a Korean diplomatic mission in their country of residence. First, they need to download the application form. Then, they can apply to the diplomatic mission and pay the fee. After applying, they can easily get a visa. Soft copy versions of the same standard documents are asked for during the visa application. 

4.Confirmation of Visa Issuance Application via Korean Immigration Office

Confirmation of visa issuance via the Korean immigration office is a slightly different version made via the Visa Portal. For this one, it is necessary to visit the Korean immigration office which has jurisdiction over the area of the applicant’s residence. The procedure of this type of visa application goes like this, first, the sponsor should complete the application form and hand it to the jurisdiction office to review the application.

Then, the sponsor should send the confirmation number to the applicants and later they can submit the application to the diplomatic office and get their visa. The documents needed for this application are confirmation of the visa issuance application form, photocopy of the passport pages, photo, and required documents for the corresponding status of stay. Other than these documents, if the sponsor applies on behalf of the applicant, the employment certificate and a copy of the sponsor’s ID, and a letter of attorney are required.

For more information and to learn the applicable status of stay, you may check the South Korea Visa Portal.