Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Los Angeles

Effective April 1, 2020, in order to combat the COVID-19 pandemic the Republic of Korea requires a mandatory 14-day quarantine for anyone entering Korea at either their place of residence or a government-designated facility.

This mandatory quarantine will apply to everyone, regardless of nationality. The only exception is for short-term foreign visitors who are issued a “Quarantine Exemption Certificate” from the Korean Embassy or the Korean Consulate General.

The quarantine exemption certificate is valid only if it is issued within 7 days of the date of the arrival to Korea. (New from September 12, 2020)

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[Business Visitors]

1. Applicants for the quarantine exemption certificate must visit Korea with B-1(visa exempt), B-2(no visa), C-1, C-3, C-4, D-7(New from Sept. 12th, 2020), D-8, or D-9 visa.

2. The Korean Consulate in Los Angeles issues quarantine exemption certificates only after we receive an official request by document from the Korean government office such as MOTIE (Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy), MSS (Ministry of SMEs and Startups), etc.

Before you visit our office or submit the exemption application, please call or email(consul-la@mofa.go.kr) us to confirm your quarantine exemption approval.

3. The maximum period for the quarantine exemption for the purpose of business is 14 days after an arrival in Korea. If your exemption is less than 14 days, you must either be quarantined for a total of 14 days (including exemption period) in your own place or in a government-designated facility(required to pay up to KRW 150,000 a day) or leave the country.
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4. Required Documents
    - Original Valid passport and 1 copy of passport
    - Paper copy of airline flight ticket with a full roundtrip itinerary
    - Quarantine Exemption Application
    ※ The contents should be the same as those submitted to the relevant Korean ministry.
    - Itinerary for Quarantine Exemption Period  
     ※ The contents should be the same as those submitted to the relevant Korean ministry.
    - Agreement to the Terms and Conditions
   

5. The applicant for the quarantine exemption certificate should visit our office during business hours(Mon-Fri 9am-4pm). A processing time is about 30 min-1 hour depends on waiting in line.

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[Immediate Family Death]
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1. We issue quarantine exemption certificate only in case of deaths of the immediate family. The maximum period for quarantine exemption is 7 days. Once your exemption period is over, you must either be quarantined for a total of 14 days (including exemption period) in your own place or in a government-designated facility(required to pay up to KRW 150,000 a day) or leave the country.​

2. Required Documents

  - Death Certificate   
  - Documents to prove the familial relationship with the deceased
  - Original Valid passport and 1 copy of passport

    - Paper copy of airline flight ticket with a full roundtrip itinerary
    - Quarantine Exemption Application(detailed funeral plan in Korea)
    - Itinerary for Quarantine Exemption Period
    - Agreement to the Terms and Conditions
    - Quarantine Exemption Certificate
    - Proof of stay such as hotel reservation confirmation
* If you are staying in your family’s place you can write the family member’s name, address, relationship with the family member, etc on the application
   
     

3. The applicant for the quarantine exemption certificate should visit our office during the business hours(Mon-Fri 9am-4pm). A processing time is about 30 min-1 hour depends on waiting in line.

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[Once you enter Korea]​

When you arrive in Korea with the Quarantine Exemption Certificate, you will be escorted to a separate facility outside of Incheon International Airport for COVID-19 diagnostic testing.

The test result will be available within 24 hours. You must wait in the facility until the results come out.  ​

If the test result is negative, you will be exempt from quarantine. However, you will still be subject to  "Active Monitoring,” which includes daily submission of health status information via “Self-Diagnosis App” and answering daily phone calls from health authorities throughout your stay in Korea.

You must follow the itinerary that you wrote in the form “Itinerary for Quarantine Exemption Period” and obey the COVID-19 spread prevention measures mandated by the Korean government.​

If the test result is positive, you will be moved to a hospital or designated treatment center for treatment/quarantine, regardless of the Quarantine Exemption Certificate.