South Korea relaxes visas for Chinese tourists

On September 29, South Korea began offering 15-day visa-free entry for groups of three or more from China, a program expected to last until June 2026.

South Korea on September 29 began visa-free entry for Chinese tourist groups, a measure it hopes will boost the economy and help improve relations with China.

Groups of three or more tourists from mainland China will be able to stay in South Korea without a visa for 15 days as part of a pilot program that is expected to last until June next year.

The move comes ahead of China's National Day holiday from October 1 to 8, as well as a series of South Korean holidays around the same time, and follows China's decision in November 2024 to exempt South Korean citizens from visas for stays of up to 30 days.

The last time South Korea exempted mainland Chinese citizens from visas was from December 2017 to March 2018, coinciding with the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.

The decision was made in the context that the new administration of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung hopes to further improve relations with China during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to the country scheduled to take place in late October to attend the Asia- Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in Gyeongju (South Korea)./.

(TTXVN/Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/han-quoc-noi-long-thi-thuc-cho-du-khach-trung-quoc-post1064747.vnp