General Training Visa

Who can apply

• ✓Foreign nationals who want to receive training in Korea that is not covered by the study (D-2) visa.
• ✓The largest group is language trainees.
• ✓D-4-1 is for people (high school graduate or above) taking a Korean language course at a university-affiliated language institute (대학부설 어학원).
• ✓D-4-7 is for foreign language training.
• ✓Other sub-codes cover trainees at approved private education institutes, foreign students in Korean elementary/middle/high schools, government scholarship trainees, and invited military trainees.
• ✓Applicants must have a confirmed place at an approved/certified institution and must prove they can pay tuition and living costs.
• ✓Applicants from countries or from institutions with high illegal-stay rates face stricter (intensive) screening.

Documents you'll need

• Visa application form with photo
• passport
• application fee
• certificate of admission / enrollment from the language institute (표준입학허가서 or 등록증)
• copy of the institution’s business registration or unique-number certificate (사업자등록증/고유번호증)
• proof of financial ability – bank balance certificate (은행 잔고증명서) in the applicant’s own name held for at least 1 month, or a parent’s balance certificate plus family-relationship documents (e.g. birth certificate) and the sponsor’s proof of income
• proof of academic background (e.g. high school diploma / graduation certificate)
• tuition payment receipt where required
• documents proving the source of funds. Overseas-issued bank/family documents usually need apostille or Korean consulate confirmation. Exact list varies by embassy and by whether the institution is a certified (IEQAS) university – always check the institution’s checklist and the HiKorea manual.

How to apply

• Commonly a Certificate of Visa Issuance (사증발급인정서) filed by the host institution, or a consul-general-issued visa (공관장 사증) at an overseas Korean mission; language training of 90 days or less is issued as Short-Term General (C-3-1) instead.
• Domestic change-of-status is possible.
• Two routes.

1. Apply for the visa at a Korean embassy/consulate abroad – many consulates issue D-4 at the Consul General’s discretion (공관장 재량발급).
2. The institution in Korea can apply on the applicant’s behalf for a Certificate of Visa Issuance / Confirmation (사증발급인정서) through HiKorea (www.hikorea.go.kr), after which the applicant collects the visa at the embassy.
   • After arrival, register as a foreign resident (외국인등록) at the local immigration office within 90 days and get the residence card.
   • Extensions and change-of-status are done at the immigration office / HiKorea.

Working on this visa

• Part-time work (시간제취업) is allowed for D-4-1 Korean-language trainees only after conditions are met, and only with prior permission applied for through HiKorea before starting work.
• Conditions per the official easylaw/immigration guidance: at least 6 months of stay since entry/status change, and Korean ability of TOPIK level 3 or above (or an accepted equivalent such as completion of the MOJ Social Integration Program/KIIP or a Sejong Institute level).
• Hours are capped (official easylaw manual figures: up to 10 hours on weekdays, with weekends/holidays/vacation not counted toward the weekday cap); students must confirm the current weekly cap on HiKorea because caps were revised in the 2023 reforms.
• Work must not be simple/unskilled labor outside permitted categories.
• Working without this permit is illegal and risks cancellation of stay.

2025–2026 policy updates

• 2023 international-student visa reform (effective 2023): financial-proof standard switched from USD to KRW and eased – D-4 language trainees must show about 10,000,000 KRW (approx.
• USD 10,000); provincial/regional universities facing enrollment shortfalls further eased to about 8,000,000 KRW for language trainees (degree D-2 students: 20,000,000 KRW, provincial 16,000,000 KRW).
• Same reform expanded student part-time work (degree students 20->25 hours/week, +5 hours for high performers) and allowed major-related internships during breaks; Korean ability can now also be shown via KIIP or Sejong Institute standards, not only TOPIK.
• IEQAS (교육국제화역량 인증제): illegal-stay-rate thresholds tightened to under 2% (schools with under 1,000 international students) / under 1% (1,000+), and the calculation base changed to enrolled students as of April 1 vs illegal-stayers in the past year.
• From the 2024 assessment, 13 institutions were placed under intensive visa screening for language (어학연수) programs, with visa issuance restricted for 1 year from the 2025 second semester.
• A further certification/実態 review was published by immigration on 2026-02-12 (details in that release).
• Effective dates as noted; figures re-verified against korea.kr and immigration.go.kr but applicants should confirm the exact current amount/hours on HiKorea.

Common mistakes

Choosing a language institute at a university that is under visa restriction or has lost IEQAS certification (visa can be refused); understating or not maintaining the required bank balance for the full screening period; using a parent’s account without the family-relationship and income documents; poor class attendance, which blocks extension and the later switch to D-2; starting a part-time job before the 6-month mark, before reaching TOPIK 3, or without the HiKorea work permit; assuming D-4 converts automatically to D-2 (it needs attendance record + Korean level + a new application).

Where this leads

Official source ↗  Official manual ↗