Hello again! Quick update for COVID rules as many things have changed since July 2022, my last post.

All quarantine as well as pre-departure AND arrival testing have been eliminated.

Vaccine status is not checked and documents do not need to be shown.

If you are entering on a visa free tourist entry, YOU MUST DO K-ETA BEFORE YOU FLY. YOU SHOULD DO IT ONE MONTH IN ADVANCE DUE TO LONG PROCESSING TIMES. Most citizens of Western countries do get it immediately, but many also do have to wait WEEKS for approval for absolutely no reason at all.

The only thing that you SHOULD do (but not required) is the Q-CODE passenger info form (QR CODE). It is totally useless, as it is just re-entering your address and symptom history, but they still have it in place. If you don’t do it, you have to write up the form manually and go through a separate line. If you do the QR code, it’s just a two second scan of the QR code. As this is not required, airlines should be asking for this at check-in. It literally is not a requirement so they can’t force you to do it.

Many people report problems with the address portion of the process. To get around this, type the SHORTEST Korean address. Find your AirBnB/hotel address in Korean and copy just the xx로 or xx동 part and the numbers that come after it. The system can’t handle the long address with the building name and the extra detail.

There is no QR code check in, nothing happening at restaurants or concerts or admission to any building anymore. That is long, long gone.

Masks are still required inside and on all public transit and taxis. Yes, that means you have to put the mask on to walk into a restaurant and then take it off when you sit down. Masks are not required outside, in any setting (large crowd, concert, etc.) at any time anywhere. That being said, the vast majority of Koreans still do wear them out of social shame and not wanting to stand out too much, but you don’t have to wear them outside. The law was removed in the summer. It used to be the law to wear them outside, too.