Retiring in South Korea: Visa, Taxation of the French Pension, Health and Cost of Living

The Visa Navigator guide of Korean immigration describes no retirement visa in the usual sense: retirement-related statuses go through investment, permanent residence or family. A French national stays 90 days without a visa, under the control of the authorities, who may refuse entry in case of repeated “visa runs” (France Diplomatie): successive short stays therefore do not amount to a residence plan. For a longer stay, the official sources outline four routes:

• F-2 for a retired investor: reserved for people aged 55 and over who invest more than 300 million KRW (about €198,000) in the immigration-by-investment scheme, together with the family members who accompany them.
• F-5, permanent resident: the official list cites a category of “pensioners”, as well as the retired investor who has maintained their investment for more than 5 years in F-2 status. The conditions of the “pensioners” category, notably the pension amount and age, do not appear in the guide: they are confirmed with the immigration service (1345).
• Family statuses: the spouse of a Korean (F-6) stays with no restriction on employment; the family visitor (F-1) stays up to 2 years to live with family, with no right to work.
• Other F-2 statuses: investors in a public project (more than 500 million KRW, about €330,000) or in real estate (more than 700 million KRW, about €462,500), long-term residents.

Any stay of more than 90 days requires registration as a resident foreigner within 90 days of entry and the resident card; for an F-5, the card is valid for 10 years and the re-entry permit is waived for a return within 2 years. The formalities are detailed on the page living in South Korea. The guide to retiring abroad and the page on retirement insurance abroad place this choice among the other destinations.

The amounts cited by the immigration guide concern investors: more than 300 million KRW for the retired investor aged 55 and over, more than 500 million for the investor in a public project, more than 700 million for the real estate investor. F-2 status is granted for 5 years with partial restrictions on employment, and the move to permanent residence requires maintaining the investment for more than 5 years. The conversions on this page rely on the ECB reference rate of 02/10/2026: 1,513.44 KRW per €1.

For the “pensioners” category of F-5 status, the guide publishes neither a pension threshold nor a prior length of stay: no amount is therefore put forward here. A written enquiry to the immigration contact centre (1345, or +82-2-1345 from abroad) clarifies the criteria in force before any financial commitment. Residence conditions change regularly: the Visa Navigator guide and the HiKorea site remain the reference.

The France-Korea social security agreement, signed on 6 December 2004 and in force since 1 June 2007, coordinates invalidity, old age and survivors. It lifts residence clauses: each pension can be received from any country. Each state recognises the insurance periods completed in the other, under a mechanism of totalisation and pro-rating that makes it possible to open rights. A French national who has contributed in Korea can also request a lump-sum refund of their Korean contributions, at the price of excluding those periods from later totalisation (CLEISS).

A retiree who receives a pension from the Assurance retraite while abroad receives a certificate of existence every year, to be completed by the competent local authority (town hall, police station) and returned within 2 months, failing which payment is suspended; an online service makes it possible to send it to all schemes at once. According to CLEISS, a person who is no longer tax resident in France no longer pays the CSG, CRDS and CASA (French social levies) on their pension; a health insurance contribution of 3.2% on the basic pension and 4.2% on supplementary pensions is deducted if they come under a French scheme. See the guide to receiving your pension abroad and the one on quarters worked abroad.

The France-Korea tax treaty was signed in Paris on 19 June 1979 and came into force on 1 February 1981; it was amended by a protocol signed on 9 April 1991, in force since 1 March 1992, then by the BEPS multilateral convention, applied in France since 1 January 2019 and in Korea since 1 September 2020 (French tax administration). Its article 18 shares the right to tax pensions as follows:

• pensions and similar remuneration paid for past employment are taxable only in the beneficiary’s state of residence;
• by exception, pensions and sums paid under the social security legislation of a state are taxable in that state;
• civil service pensions (article 19) are taxable only in the state that pays them.

The classification of each pension (basic scheme, supplementary pension, private or public pension) therefore determines the state that taxes it: it is checked with the tax administration, which also specifies the treatment of a resident of Korea. To avoid double taxation, Korea grants a tax credit to its residents for tax paid in France, up to the portion of Korean tax corresponding to French-source income. Tax residence is determined by each state’s law and by article 4 of the treaty. Individual tax advice remains useful before departure.

The S1 form applies only in Europe: the France-Korea agreement contains no provision allowing care in Korea to be reimbursed under the French pension. CLEISS recommends voluntary CFE membership or private insurance. In parallel, any foreigner residing 6 months or more must enrol in the NHIS, as a regional insured person, with a contribution based on income and assets; the French embassy cites among the categories that can request the exemption CFE members and holders of recognised private insurance, the request being renewed every year. In case of late payment, benefits may be limited, restrictions may affect visa extensions and seizures are possible.

The CFE offers retirees a plan reserved for people with no occupational activity who hold a pension from the French basic scheme, with no health questionnaire. Enrolment within three months of moving abroad avoids the waiting period; after that, it is three months before age 45 and six months from age 45. Abroad, the CFE reimburses according to rates or flat amounts of the country of care, applied to actual expenses. For a temporary stay in France, a retiree who receives a pension based on at least 15 years of insurance in France is covered, with prior medical approval for a hospital stay of more than one month. The French embassy notes that healthcare is very expensive in South Korea. See the guide to retiree health insurance abroad, the page healthcare reimbursement in South Korea and the CFE supplementary cover.

France Diplomatie describes the cost of living in South Korea as notably high. Housing works through jeonse, a large deposit entrusted to the landlord for 1 to 2 years and returned at the end of the lease, or through wolse, a more modest deposit, generally 10 to 20 times the monthly rent, together with a rent. A retiree who does not want to tie up a large deposit compares these formulas; the foreign residents’ centre in Seoul offers property advice in seven languages to prevent disputes and jeonse fraud.

To choose a city, a retiree looks at the proximity of a hospital with an international patient centre, ease of travel and the housing budget. Seoul concentrates the international health centres and services for foreigners, Incheon and its region are close to the airport, and Busan or Jeju, further south, call for finding out about the typhoon season. France Diplomatie specifies that driving requires an international or Korean licence and that foreigners involved in an accident are often held responsible. The page living in South Korea details cities, climate and safety.

• Before departure: confirm the targeted residence status with the immigration service, tell the pension funds the new address and prepare the annual certificate of existence.
• On arrival: register as a resident foreigner within 90 days, declare any change of address within 15 days and enrol in the NHIS or file the exemption request within 14 days of the enrolment declaration.
• Every year: renew the NHIS exemption request if it has been granted, answer the certificate of existence and check the tax situation of each pension.
• For medical emergencies: remember 119 (fire service, ambulance), 1339 (medical emergencies) and 112 (police).

The checklist for the first 90 days details settling in, and the page on expat health insurance compares the cover available; Expavy helps you weigh it against your situation.