Insights
Practical notes on doing business in Korea — for foreign companies and investors.
- FDI
Setting Up a Foreign-Invested Company in Korea: Getting the Order Right
A step-by-step roadmap for foreign investors incorporating in Korea, and why doing the steps in the wrong sequence…
Read more - FDI
Choosing Your Entity Type in Korea: Stock Corporation vs Limited Company
A practical comparison of the chusik hoesa (stock corporation) and yuhan hoesa (limited company) for foreign investors…
Read more - FDI
Branch, Subsidiary, or Liaison Office in Korea: Which Presence Fits?
Foreign companies entering Korea must choose among a branch, a subsidiary, and a liaison office. Each carries different…
Read more - FDI
FDI Notification Under Korea's Foreign Investment Promotion Act
The foreign direct investment notification is the legal gateway to foreign-invested company status in Korea. Here is…
Read more - FDI
Capital Validation and Inbound Investment Remittance in Korea
After the FDI notification comes the money. Korea requires that your investment capital be remitted and validated in a…
Read more - FDI
Opening a Corporate Bank Account in Korea as a Foreign Investor
Foreign investors are often surprised by how cautious Korean banks have become. Here is what to expect and how to…
Read more - FDI
The D-8 Investor Visa and How It Ties to Your Korean Company
The D-8 visa lets foreign investors live in Korea to run the company they fund, but it is tightly linked to how the…
Read more - FDI
Business Licenses and Permits You Need Before Operating in Korea
Incorporating a company is not the same as being allowed to trade. Many Korean businesses require sector licenses or…
Read more - FDI
Minimum FDI Investment Thresholds in Korea and What They Buy You
Korea sets minimum investment amounts for foreign-invested status and the investor visa. Understanding what each…
Read more - FDI
Post-Incorporation Compliance in Korea You Cannot Skip
Forming the company is the beginning, not the end. Foreign-invested companies in Korea carry ongoing tax, reporting…
Read more - Advisory
Shareholder Agreements for Foreign-Owned Korean Companies
Why a shareholder agreement protects foreign investors in a Korean company and which clauses matter most.
Read more - Advisory
Corporate Governance and Board Resolutions in Korea
How board and shareholder decisions are made in a Korean company, and where foreign managers commonly slip up.
Read more - Advisory
M&A Due Diligence in the Korean Market
What buyers should investigate before acquiring a Korean company, and the hidden risks that surface in due diligence.
Read more - Advisory
Joint Ventures in Korea: Structuring and Exit
How to structure a Korean joint venture for control and a clean exit, and the deadlock traps to avoid.
Read more - Advisory
Asset Deal vs Share Deal in a Korean Acquisition
The practical differences between buying assets and buying shares in Korea, and how to choose between them.
Read more - Advisory
Drafting Commercial Contracts Under Korean Law
How to draft enforceable commercial contracts in Korea and the assumptions foreign companies should drop.
Read more - Advisory
Distribution and Agency Agreements in Korea
The legal differences between distributors and agents in Korea and how to structure these arrangements safely.
Read more - Advisory
Five Contract Clauses Foreign Companies Get Wrong in Korea
The recurring clause mistakes that cost foreign companies money in Korean contracts, and how to fix them.
Read more - Advisory
Employment Contracts and Work Rules in Korea
What foreign employers must include in Korean employment contracts and work rules to stay compliant.
Read more - Advisory
Termination and Dismissal Law: Where Korea Differs
Why dismissing an employee in Korea is harder than many foreign employers expect, and how to do it lawfully.
Read more - Advisory
Hiring Foreign Workers in Korea: Visas and Compliance for Employers
What Korean employers must verify before hiring foreign staff, from visa categories to reporting duties and the…
Read more - Advisory
Personal Data Protection (PIPA) for Your Korean Operation
Korea's Personal Information Protection Act applies the moment you handle local data. Here is what foreign-run…
Read more - Advisory
Consumer Protection and E-Commerce Rules in Korea
Selling to Korean consumers online triggers a strict set of disclosure, withdrawal, and registration rules. Here is…
Read more - Advisory
Advertising and Labeling Regulation in Korea
False or exaggerated claims and missing labels are among the fastest ways to draw regulatory attention in Korea. Here…
Read more - Advisory
Protecting Trademarks and IP in Korea
Korea is a first-to-file country, so the company that registers first usually wins. Here is how foreign businesses…
Read more - VASP
VASP Registration Under the Specific Financial Information Act
Operating a crypto business in Korea generally requires registering as a virtual-asset service provider. Here is what…
Read more - VASP
Foreign Exchange Act Compliance for Crypto and Fintech
Korea's Foreign Exchange Transactions Act governs cross-border money flows, and crypto and fintech businesses ignore it…
Read more - VASP
Cross-Border Remittance and Payment Licensing in Korea
Moving money for customers across borders in Korea is a licensed activity. Here is how the payment and remittance…
Read more - VASP
Crypto Taxation in Korea: Today and the 2027 Regime
Korea's taxation of virtual-asset gains has been repeatedly deferred. Here is where the rules stand and how to prepare…
Read more - VASP
Token Issuance and Stablecoins: The Regulatory Perimeter
Whether you can issue a token or stablecoin to Korean users depends on how it is classified. Here is how to think about…
Read more - VASP
AML/KYC Obligations for Digital-Asset Businesses in Korea
What Korea's anti-money-laundering rules require of virtual-asset businesses, from customer due diligence to…
Read more - VASP
Serving Korean Users From an Overseas Crypto Exchange
When an offshore exchange is treated as operating in Korea, the registration trigger, and the enforcement risks of…
Read more - Advisory
Corporate Income Tax Basics for Foreign-Owned Companies in Korea
How Korean corporate income tax applies to a foreign-invested company: residence, taxable income, rates structure, and…
Read more - Advisory
VAT Registration and Filing in Korea
When a foreign-owned business must register for Korean VAT, how the quarterly filing cycle works, and the rules on…
Read more - Advisory
Withholding Tax on Payments Abroad From Korea
How Korean withholding tax applies to dividends, interest, royalties, and service fees paid to foreign recipients, and…
Read more - Advisory
Transfer Pricing for Related-Party Transactions in Korea
How Korea's arm's-length rules apply to transactions between a Korean company and its foreign affiliates, and what…
Read more - Litigation
Debt Recovery in Korea: Why Attachment Comes First
Why securing the debtor's assets through provisional attachment, before or alongside suing, is the decisive step in…
Read more - Litigation
Provisional Attachment and Injunctions in Korea Explained
The difference between provisional attachment and provisional disposition, when each is used, and how these urgent…
Read more - Litigation
Enforcing a Foreign Judgment in Korea
When and how a judgment obtained in another country can be recognized and enforced against assets in Korea, and the…
Read more - Litigation
Arbitration vs Litigation for Cross-Border Disputes in Korea
How to choose between Korean court litigation and arbitration for cross-border commercial disputes, weighing…
Read more - Litigation
Commercial Litigation Procedure in Korean Courts
A practical walkthrough of how a commercial lawsuit moves through Korean courts, from filing the complaint to judgment…
Read more - Litigation
Breach of Contract and Damages Under Korean Law
What counts as a breach of contract in Korea, how damages are measured, and the steps to claim compensation effectively.
Read more - Litigation
Shareholder and Joint-Venture Disputes
How shareholder and joint-venture conflicts arise in Korean companies and the legal tools available to protect your…
Read more - Litigation
Product Liability Claims and Defense
How product liability works in Korea, what manufacturers and importers must prove, and how to defend against defect…
Read more - Litigation
Enforcing Arbitral Awards Under the New York Convention
How foreign arbitral awards are recognized and enforced in Korea, and the limited grounds a Korean court may refuse…
Read more - Advisory
Liquidating or Exiting a Korean Company
The legal steps to wind down or exit a Korean subsidiary cleanly, from board resolution to final tax clearance and…
Read more - Advisory
Corporate Rehabilitation and Bankruptcy in Korea
An overview of Korea's rehabilitation and bankruptcy procedures and what foreign creditors and distressed companies…
Read more - Advisory
Director Liability and D&O Risk in Korea
The duties Korean law imposes on company directors, when personal liability attaches, and how D&O insurance fits in.
Read more - FDI
Free Economic Zones and Foreign-Investment Incentives
How Korea's free economic zones and investment incentive programs work, and how foreign investors can qualify for…
Read more - Advisory
Setting Up a Korea Entity Remotely by Power of Attorney
How foreign founders can incorporate and run a Korean company from abroad using a properly drafted power of attorney.
Read more - Criminal
Responding to a Korean Police Summons (출석요구서) as a Foreigner
What a foreigner should do after receiving a Korean police summons, why the first statement is decisive, and how to use…
Read more - Criminal
Charged as an Unknowing Money Mule in a Korean Voice-Phishing Case
Foreigners are often recruited as withdrawal or transfer agents in voice-phishing schemes; the case turns on whether…
Read more - Criminal
DUI and Deportation for Foreigners in Korea (the 0.03% Limit)
Korea's drink-driving limit is just 0.03% blood-alcohol, and a conviction can trigger license revocation, fines, and an…
Read more - Civil
Unpaid Wages for Foreign Workers in Korea: Filing a Labor Office Complaint and Suing
Foreign workers in Korea are protected by the Labor Standards Act regardless of nationality or visa status, and can…
Read more - Civil
How to Get Your Jeonse/Wolse Deposit Back in Korea
When a Korean landlord will not return your jeonse or wolse deposit, the Housing Lease Protection Act gives tenants…
Read more - Criminal
Assault and Injury Charges for Foreigners in Korea: Why Settlement (합의) Decides the Outcome
Why a victim settlement (합의) so often determines whether a foreigner is prosecuted for assault in Korea, and how injury…
Read more - Immigration
Changing Jobs on an E-7 Visa in Korea Without a Release Letter
How E-7 visa holders in Korea can change employers, when prior approval is needed, and how to switch jobs without the…
Read more - Immigration
Keeping Your F-6 Visa After Divorce in Korea (the F-6-3 fault rule)
Whether you can keep an F-6 marriage visa after divorce in Korea depends on fault. An uncontested divorce usually fails…
Read more - Criminal
Arrested in Korea as a Foreigner: Your Rights and the First 48 Hours
What a foreigner arrested in Korea needs to know: the right to silence and counsel, emergency arrest versus a detention…
Read more - Immigration
Appealing a Deportation or Exit Order in Korea: Deadlines and Options
The remedies available when Korea issues a deportation order or a departure order, how the two differ, and the…
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