Arrival playbook
Your First 14 Days in Korea: The Exact Order to Do Things
A practical arrival sequence for long-stay newcomers: stabilize, protect your paperwork, find an address you can document, and avoid paying for the wrong solution too early.
LANDSETTLEKey takeaways
- Use your first two days to create one deadline sheet, not to complete every account and application.
- Book or verify your immigration route before choosing housing around an imagined document list.
- Treat a temporary address and a long-term home as separate decisions until the landlord can provide clear written paperwork.
- Ask the landlord or agent for the exact document and signer before sending any deposit.
- After you become a registered foreign resident, a later move has its own address-reporting deadline.
You have just arrived, your hotel checkout date is approaching, and several people are telling you to get a SIM, a bank account, an immigration appointment, and a room immediately. The dangerous response is to pay for the first room that seems to solve all four problems.
For a 3–24 month stay, the first fortnight is about putting address, immigration, and housing in the right order. Foreign nationals intending to stay in Korea for 90 days or more must apply for foreign resident registration within 90 days of entry, so put that deadline on your calendar now—but do not confuse the 90-day legal deadline with a reason to rush into a poor lease.1
The first 14 days: a working sequence
Follow this order, then adjust it to your visa and move-in date
- Before landing to Day 1 Protect your starting documents Keep your passport, visa-related entry records, temporary-stay booking, and school or employer contact in one folder you can access offline. Write down the checkout date and the address exactly as shown on the booking; do not rely on a map pin alone.
- Days 1–2 Make one deadline sheet List your permitted stay period, temporary accommodation end date, school or job start date, and housing budget. This turns scattered arrival tasks into a sequence: first a stable place to sleep, then an address you can document, then accounts and routines.
- Days 2–4 Check your immigration route before committing housing money Use the official Hi Korea and immigration guidance for your own status of stay. Record the stated application route, the documents requested for your case, and the earliest appointment or service option that fits your arrival plan.
- Days 3–8 Screen long-term homes View homes only after you know what address-related evidence you may need. Ask the agent or landlord who will sign the agreement, what document they can issue, and the exact move-in date before discussing a deposit transfer.
- Days 7–12 Choose the home and preserve the paper trail Compare the written terms, full address, signer, payment recipient, and move-in date—not just the room itself. Keep the signed agreement, payment receipt, and every message that confirms those points.
- Days 10–14 Set the next administrative checkpoint If your final move-in happens later, note the date separately from your immigration process. Your address can change after registration, but that later move has a reporting obligation; do not let the paperwork disappear once you receive the keys.
Your document folder before you transfer a deposit
Ask for these items in writing
- Full property address and unit Request the address as it will appear on the contract, including building and unit where applicable. If the agent gives only a landmark or building nickname, ask for the written address before you pay.
- Named contract signer Ask: “Who will sign my lease, and is that person the landlord or an authorized representative?” If the answer changes between viewing and payment, pause the transaction until the names and roles are clear.
- Move-in date and payment recipient Ask: “What date can I actually receive keys, and whose account will receive the deposit?” A room is not ready simply because it was advertised as available.
- Address-supporting document for your own procedure Ask: “For my immigration procedure, which document can you provide: a signed lease, accommodation confirmation, or another written proof?” Match the answer against the official requirements for your status rather than accepting a verbal promise.
- Passport and entry/stay records Keep originals secure and carry copies only when a provider accepts them. Your immigration, mobile, bank, and housing steps may ask for different combinations, so do not hand over unnecessary originals.
- Official immigration guidance for your status Save the official page or PDF you used, plus any appointment confirmation. Recheck it if your address, school, employer, or status plan changes.
A temporary hotel, dormitory, or friend’s home can solve the first-night problem without being the right address for every later procedure. Separate the question “Where can I stay this week?” from “What written address evidence will I use?”; that distinction prevents the most expensive kind of shortcut.
Three conversations to have early
- 01
1. Ask your school or employer for a dated checklist
Contact the international office, HR contact, or programme coordinator on Day 1 or 2. Say: “I arrived on [date] and plan to live off campus. Which immigration documents and address documents does my status normally require?” If they provide only general advice, use it as a prompt to check the official route yourself rather than as a substitute for it.
- 02
2. Ask the housing side one document question before negotiating price
At a viewing or by message, ask: “Before I send any deposit, can you confirm the full address, the person who signs the contract, and what written proof of accommodation you can provide?” If they cannot answer all three clearly, treat the room as an unconfirmed option and keep looking; a lower monthly rent does not repair missing paperwork.
- 03
3. Make your immigration plan from the official instructions, not from another newcomer’s timeline
Open the official guidance for your status and identify the documents it names, then schedule or use the channel it specifies. Bring the originals and copies listed for your case, and ask at the counter: “If I move after this registration, where and by when do I report the new address?” Write the answer down with the date.
Once you have registered, moving still matters
If you are already registered as a foreign resident and then move, report the change of place of stay within 15 days from moving in. The report can be made to the relevant local government office or the immigration office with jurisdiction over the new place of stay; keep your move date and address documents together so the deadline is visible.2
Do not build your first two weeks around a job that has not yet started or a room that has not yet been documented. Put your permitted stay conditions, temporary checkout date, and housing evidence on the same sheet; then check the official route that applies to your status before agreeing that an employer or roommate will “handle it later.”
Your school or employer may know the local routine, but ask them for named contacts and documents rather than relying on a verbal sequence. Their housing support can be useful; the lease, address evidence, and official immigration requirements are still documents you should inspect yourself.
Search homes from the destination you must reach every week
Set your campus or workplace first, then compare homes by the full door-to-door route—not by a neighborhood name alone.
Questions newcomers ask after Day 14
Should I wait for my immigration appointment before looking for a long-term room?
No. Search in parallel, but do not pay simply because an appointment is approaching. Use the appointment to clarify your document route and use the housing search to find a home that can support it in writing.
Can I use temporary accommodation for everything?
It depends on the document you need and what the accommodation provider will actually issue. Ask for the exact written proof first, then compare it against the official instructions for your own procedure.
What if a mobile shop or bank tells me to come back with different identification?
Ask which exact document is missing and whether a different product or branch can serve a new arrival. Note the answer, then continue with housing and immigration tasks instead of losing the day to one application.
What should I keep after I sign a lease?
Keep the signed agreement, payment receipt, full address, move-in date, and the messages that identify the signer and payment recipient. Save copies somewhere you can access even if your phone is lost or your Korean number changes.