Money, Customs and Tax Refunds in South Korea
Three money problems meet you at the border: what to pay with, what to declare, and what you can claim back. This page settles all three, and tells you plainly where the official record is contradictory.
Researched, not visited — sources and dates belowThe short answer for most visitors
Bring one card you trust and about ₩100,000 in cash. Declare nothing unless you are carrying more than US$10,000 or shopping seriously. Claim tax back on any single receipt of 15,000 won or more.
Pay by card almost everywhere
Korea runs closer to cashless than most countries visitors come from. Shops, restaurants, cafes, convenience stores and taxis take cards as a matter of course.
Carry a modest cash float anyway
Traditional markets, street food stalls, some temples and the occasional small guesthouse still work in cash. ₩50,000–100,000 covers the gaps without leaving you carrying a brick of notes.
Declare only if you cross a threshold
Cash and equivalents above US$10,000 must be declared. Goods above the duty-free allowance must be declared. Below both, walk the nothing-to-declare channel.
Keep your receipts and your shopping unopened
The tax refund is real money and the process is not difficult, but it depends on paperwork you can only gather at the till, and on goods customs can still inspect.
Or go straight to the problem in front of you
I am about to land and I do not know what to put on the form
Most visitors submit nothing. You only need the traveller declaration if you are carrying cash and equivalents over US$10,000, goods over the duty-free allowance, restricted items, or medicines containing controlled substances. Everything else goes through the nothing-to-declare channel, where you may still be selected for a spot check.
I just want to know how to pay for things day to day
Card first, cash as backup. The one place the system will surprise you is public transport, which runs on its own stored-value card rather than on your bank card.
I have been shopping and I want the tax back
You need receipts of 15,000 won or more, departure within three months of purchase, and goods that are still unopened and unused when you reach the airport. There are three routes to the money: at the till, at a downtown booth, or at the airport.
Paying in Korea — cash or card?
Card, overwhelmingly. Korea adopted card payment early and thoroughly, and the habit runs deeper than in most of the countries our readers travel from. The interesting question is not whether your card works but where the small, cash-shaped gaps remain.
Where your card will simply work
Department stores, chain and independent restaurants, cafes, convenience stores, pharmacies, cinemas, museums, taxis and almost all accommodation take Visa and Mastercard without comment. Contactless is common. You will rarely be asked whether you would rather pay cash, and in some places you will struggle to.
Where cash still matters
The exceptions cluster in the places you probably came to see. Traditional markets — Gwangjang in Seoul, Jagalchi in Busan, Seomun in Daegu — run substantially on cash at stall level, and the woman ladling tteokbokki into a paper cup has no card reader and no interest in acquiring one. The same is true of most street food, some temple donation boxes and admissions, coin lockers, older coin laundries, and the occasional family-run guesthouse outside the big cities.
A useful way to think about it. Cash in Korea is not a fallback for when the card fails. It is the currency of a particular kind of transaction — small, fast, face-to-face, often food — and those transactions are frequently the ones worth having. Carry cash as an entry ticket to the markets rather than as insurance.
Transport is its own system
Buses and the subway do not take your foreign bank card at the gate. They run on a stored-value transport card — T-money, or Seoul's Climate Card for unlimited travel — which you load with cash or, increasingly, with a foreign card. That is a large enough topic to have its own page.
Getting and moving money
You do not need won before you arrive. Korean exchange rates at home are usually poor, and the airport gives you better options within a few minutes of clearing customs.
Cash on arrival
Withdraw at an ATM in the arrivals hall. The important detail is that not every Korean ATM accepts foreign cards — a fair number serve domestic accounts only, and will reject you without explanation. Look for machines marked Global ATM or International Cards. Bank ATMs inside the airport terminals and the machines in 7-Eleven branches are the reliable choices, and 7-Eleven is dense enough across Korean cities that topping up later is rarely a problem.
| Method | Best for | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Airport ATM on arrival | Your first ₩100,000, with no planning required | Your own bank's foreign withdrawal fee; decline any offer to convert to your home currency |
| 7-Eleven ATMs in town | Topping up mid-trip | Check the machine advertises international cards before inserting |
| Exchanging cash you brought | Travellers who prefer not to use ATMs abroad | Airport exchange desks are convenient rather than generous; downtown exchange shops in Myeongdong and Itaewon are usually better |
| Card everywhere, minimal cash | City-only trips with little market or street food | You will still want a small float; leaving Gwangjang hungry is a poor outcome |
Always choose to be charged in won
Card terminals and ATMs will often offer to bill you in your home currency instead — presented helpfully, as though it removes uncertainty. It does, at a price: the conversion rate is set by the terminal operator rather than your card network, and it is reliably worse. Decline it and pay in won every time.
New since March 2026. Visitors with iPhones can now add a T-money card to Apple Wallet through the Mobile T-money app and top it up with a foreign Mastercard, American Express or UnionPay card. Convenient, but not free — reporting from users and Korean travel sources puts the top-up service fee at roughly 3.7%, so loading ₩50,000 costs around ₩51,850. Visa was not supported at launch. We have confirmed the March 2026 opening and the fee is widely and consistently reported, but we have not verified the exact percentage against an official T-money schedule. Treat 3.7% as close rather than exact, and check in the app before you load a large amount.
Customs on arrival
For an ordinary holiday this takes no time at all: you declare nothing and walk through. The thresholds below matter only if you are carrying serious cash, serious shopping, or medication.
Contradiction in the official record — read this
The Korea Customs Service publishes two different duty-free allowances
The Korean-language pages of the Korea Customs Service state a basic allowance of US$800, with alcohol up to 2 litres and US$400, and 100ml of perfume. The English-language pages of the same site still state US$600, one bottle of alcohol up to 1 litre, and 60ml of perfume — the figures that applied before Korea raised the allowance in September 2022. We checked both on 21 July 2026 and the discrepancy was live. The Korean-language pages reflect current law; the English pages appear not to have been updated. We have set out the current position below, but if a customs officer works from the English page, the number they quote may be lower than the one you were expecting.
What you may bring in duty-free
| Category | Allowance | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| General goods | US$800 total customs value | Covers everything acquired abroad, including duty-free purchases and gifts |
| Alcohol | 2 litres total and under US$400 | Counted separately from the US$800. No allowance under 19 |
| Cigarettes | 200 filter cigarettes | Counted separately. No allowance under 19 |
| E-cigarette liquid | 20ml nicotine liquid, under 1% nicotine | Counted separately |
| Perfume | 100ml | Counted separately |
| Agricultural and livestock products | 5kg per item, 40kg total, under ₩100,000 total value | Must also pass quarantine inspection |
Cash and anything cash-like
If you enter or leave Korea carrying more than US$10,000 in cash, Korean won notes, or equivalents such as cashier's cheques, you must declare it. This one we can state without hedging: it is set out in the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act and appears identically on the Korean and English customs pages.
Two practical points that catch people out. The threshold is the combined total of everything you are carrying, not per currency or per note. And if you are travelling as a couple or family, officers may treat pooled money as a single sum — do not assume splitting it across two passports puts you below the line.
Timing trap
The declaration certificate cannot be issued after you leave the arrivals hall
If you bring in more than US$10,000 and intend to take some of it out again, the Certificate of Foreign Currency Declaration you receive on arrival is what allows that. The Korea Customs Service states plainly that it cannot be issued once you have passed through immigration. If you realise afterwards, you cannot go back for it.
Medicines
Ordinary prescription and over-the-counter medicine for personal use is not a problem. Keep it in its original packaging with the pharmacy label, and carry a copy of the prescription or a letter from your doctor — not because you will usually be asked, but because it costs nothing and resolves the question instantly if you are.
Medicines containing controlled substances are a different matter, and this is where visitors get into genuine difficulty. Opioid painkillers including codeine, tramadol and oxycodone, and benzodiazepines, require a permit from Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety before you travel, regardless of your nationality and regardless of the fact that the medicine is legal and prescribed at home. Applications are made online and the guidance is to allow at least two weeks. Quantities are limited to a personal supply — commonly described as up to three months or six containers.
Where our confidence sits. The requirement for an MFDS permit for controlled substances is stated consistently by multiple Korean embassies and by the US Embassy in Seoul, and we are confident in it. The precise quantity limits and the current application route are described slightly differently across those sources, and we could not confirm a single authoritative version. If you take a controlled medicine, do not rely on this page — contact the MFDS or the Korean embassy in your country directly, and start early.
If you are over the allowance
Declare it. Korea makes the arithmetic favour honesty: voluntary declaration earns a 30% reduction in the duty owed, while goods found undeclared attract a penalty of 40% of the tax payable, rising to 60% for a second offence within two years. Both figures come from the Korea Customs Service directly. The declaration can be made on paper or through the mobile app, which will also issue and take payment for the assessment.
Tax refunds for visitors
Korea refunds value-added tax to non-resident visitors on qualifying purchases. It is worth doing — the sums are meaningful on any real shopping — and the mechanics are straightforward once you understand that there are three different routes and they suit different amounts.
Do you qualify?
- WhoNon-Korean residents, on goods bought at participating tax-refund or duty-free shops
- Minimum15,000 won or more on a single receipt
- DeadlineYou must leave Korea within three months of the purchase date
- ConditionGoods must be unopened and unused, and available for inspection
- DocumentsPassport, the sales certificate issued at the till, and the goods themselves
Three routes to the money
Thresholds are those published by VISITKOREA, the national tourism organisation. The Korea Customs Service page confirms the three-month rule and the unopened-goods condition but does not itself publish the won thresholds.
The airport sequence, in order
-
Ask for the tax refund sales certificate when you pay.
It is not issued automatically everywhere. Without it there is no refund, and it cannot be produced later.
-
Check in for your flight, but keep the goods in hand luggage.
This is the step people get wrong. Customs may need to see the items. Once they are checked into the hold you cannot produce them, and the refund fails.
-
Get customs export confirmation before immigration.
At terminals with self-service kiosks, scan your passport and the sales certificate. Where there is no kiosk, or if the kiosk selects you for inspection, go to the customs inspection team in the departure hall.
- Clear immigration and security as normal.
-
Collect the refund airside.
Refund counters and kiosks sit inside the duty-free zone after immigration. Cash refunds are collected here; card refunds are credited automatically, typically within a few weeks.
Is it worth the trouble? On a few thousand won of souvenirs, no — take the immediate refund at the till or let it go. On cosmetics, clothing or electronics running to several hundred thousand won, yes, comfortably, and the airport queue is usually shorter than the one for coffee. The deciding factor is rarely the money and usually the time: if you are running late for a flight, the refund is the thing to abandon.
If it goes wrong
Recoverable, but only before you fly
You checked your shopping into the hold
Customs cannot confirm export of goods it cannot see. If you have not yet passed the check-in desk, ask to retrieve the items and carry them. If the bag has gone, the refund on those goods is lost — there is no post-departure claim route for a traveller who has already left.
Not recoverable
You brought in over US$10,000 and did not declare it
Failure to report is an offence under the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act, punishable by imprisonment of up to one year or a fine of up to ₩100 million, and the certificate you would need to take the money out again cannot be issued retrospectively. If you are still in the arrivals hall, declare it now.
Awkward, not serious
Your card is declined at an ATM
Most often the machine does not accept foreign cards rather than anything being wrong with yours. Find one marked Global ATM or International Cards, or use a 7-Eleven. If several machines refuse in succession, your bank's fraud system has probably flagged the country — a message through your banking app usually clears it faster than a phone call.
Ask someone
You are unsure whether something needs declaring
Declare it. The cost of declaring something you did not need to is a short conversation. The cost of not declaring something you should have is a penalty of 40% of the tax due. Korea's tourist helpline on 1330 operates in English around the clock and will also field questions before you travel.
Questions people actually ask
Is Korea a cash or card country?
Card, for almost everything. Shops, restaurants, cafes, taxis and accommodation take Visa and Mastercard as standard. Cash still matters at traditional markets, street food stalls, some temples and small family-run places, so carry 50,000 to 100,000 won as a float.
Will my Visa or Mastercard work in Korea?
Yes, in the great majority of places. The exception is public transport, where fare gates do not accept foreign bank cards and you need a T-money or Climate Card instead. Always choose to be charged in Korean won rather than your home currency.
Do I need to declare my cash when entering Korea?
Only if you are carrying more than US$10,000 in cash, Korean won notes or equivalents such as cashier's cheques. The threshold applies to the combined total. Below that, no declaration is required.
What is the minimum spend for a tax refund in Korea?
15,000 won or more on a single receipt at a participating tax-refund shop. You must also leave Korea within three months of the purchase date, and the goods must be unopened and unused.
How do I claim the tax refund at Incheon Airport?
Check in but keep the goods in your hand luggage, then get customs export confirmation at a self-service kiosk or the customs desk before immigration. After clearing immigration, collect your refund at a counter or kiosk inside the departure zone. Cash is paid airside; card refunds are credited later.
How much duty-free shopping can I bring into Korea?
The Korean-language Korea Customs Service pages state US$800 of general goods, plus separate allowances for alcohol, cigarettes and perfume. The English-language pages of the same site still show the older US$600 figure. We recommend planning against US$800 but checking the Korean page if the amount matters to you.
Check this before you go
Researched 21 July 2026 from the sources below. Customs allowances, refund thresholds and transport payment options all change, and the last of these changed in March 2026. Review due January 2027.
- Korea Customs Service — traveller belongings clearance (Korean; the current allowances, voluntary declaration reduction and penalties)
- Korea Customs Service — Declaration of Foreign Currency (English; the US$10,000 rule, procedure and penalties)
- Korea Customs Service — Tax Refund (English; export confirmation, three-month rule)
- Korea Customs Service — duty-free allowance, English page (shown for comparison; still displays the pre-2022 figures)
- Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (permits for medicines containing controlled substances)
- Korea Travel Helpline 1330 — English, 24 hours, and answers questions from overseas
Where to go next
Help us keep this page honest
This page depends on rules that move and on at least one official source that currently contradicts itself. If you have been through any of this recently, we would like to hear what actually happened.
- Did a customs officer quote you US$800 or US$600 as the allowance? Known conflict
- What did the Apple Wallet T-money top-up actually cost you? Unverified figure
- Has Visa support arrived for Mobile T-money yet?
- How long did the refund queue take at Incheon, and at which terminal?
- If you applied for an MFDS medicine permit, how long did it take?
Corrections and first-hand accounts both welcome — tell us what you found. We date every change and say what we altered.
Researched, not visited. Figures verified against the Korea Customs Service on 21 July 2026 and dated accordingly. Nothing here is financial or legal advice; where a threshold matters to your circumstances, confirm it against the official source before you travel.