D-8 Investor Visa: Minimum Investment Amount, How to Transfer the Funds, and Where Applications Get Decided

The minimum investment for a D-8-1 investor visa is KRW 100 million under Korea's Foreign Investment Promotion Act, and that money must enter Korea either as a bank remittance designated as "investment capital" or as cash carried in and declared at customs — otherwise it will not be recognized as investment funds. This guide is for foreign investors who plan to establish a Korean corporation and run it themselves, especially those who need to bring funds in from abroad. We cover, in order: the legal basis for the minimum amount, the differences between transfer methods, proving the source of funds, and how to submit your application documents.

Minimum Investment Requirements for the D-8 Visa

The statutory threshold is KRW 100 million

The legal basis is Article 2(1)(4) of the Foreign Investment Promotion Act and Article 2 of its Enforcement Decree. To qualify as foreign investment, you must invest at least KRW 100 million and hold at least 10% of the voting shares. If either requirement is missing, the foreign investment itself doesn't exist in the eyes of the law, and you never even reach the D-8 application stage. It looks simple on paper, but in practice, what trips people up is usually not the amount — it's the way the money came in.

Joint investment means KRW 100 million per person

If two people pool KRW 100 million together, neither of them can get a D-8. Each investor seeking a visa must invest at least KRW 100 million on their own. If you set up the corporation with the wrong equity structure, you'll have to go through a capital increase and amended filings later — so the first thing to get right is how the investment amount is split among investors.

Meeting the amount is not the finish line

In actual screening, what matters before the fact that KRW 100 million sits in an account is where that money came from and how it entered Korea. Scrutiny of fund flows has tightened noticeably in recent reviews, and requests to substantiate that the business is genuine have also increased. Whether your particular fund structure meets the screening standard varies case by case, so review the requirements before you send anything.

Transfer Method 1: International Bank Remittance

Designating the purpose as "Investment Capital" is critical

When sending money from an overseas bank to Korea, the remittance purpose must be designated as Investment Capital. Money that arrives labeled as living expenses, study-abroad funds, or a gift-type transfer is hard to get recognized as investment capital, even if the amount is right. Before incorporation, the recipient should be an account in the investor's own name or a temporary account for company formation, and the certificate of foreign currency purchase (remittance confirmation) issued by the bank becomes the key piece of evidence in the immigration review later.

Where things most often go wrong in practice

This is the stage where applications typically stumble:

• Third-party remittances sent under a family member's or acquaintance's name — proving the funds belong to the investor becomes tangled
• Transfers sent with the purpose field left blank or marked "other" — correcting the designation afterward is extremely difficult
• Informal channels or unofficial money-changing networks — these can escalate into violations of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act

Third-party remittances in particular have recently led to outright denials in similar cases, with no opportunity to supplement the file.

Split transfers are allowed — with conditions

Sending the KRW 100 million in several installments rather than one lump sum is permitted in itself. The problems start here: if the purpose designation or the sender differs across transfers, whether they can be aggregated becomes uncertain. Banks and immigration may judge differently depending on how many installments you send and over what period, so it's safer to confirm your plan is structurally sound before sending.

Transfer Method 2: Carrying Cash In and Declaring at Customs

Without a foreign exchange declaration certificate, recognition is unlikely

Physically carrying cash into Korea is legally recognized as well. However, you must declare the foreign currency at customs upon entry and receive a foreign exchange declaration certificate — without it, that money effectively cannot be used as investment capital. The point people miss most often: there is no procedure for obtaining the certificate retroactively after entry.

Bank remittance vs. carrying cash in

In practice, bank remittance is the default choice because it leaves a clean documentary trail.

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Proving the Source of Funds — Reviewed Before Anyone Counts Your Documents

What materials can substantiate it

Here is the core point: even with money sitting in the account, a weak explanation of how it got there can derail things immediately.

• Personal income — employment certificate, income tax filings, salary deposit records
• Business income — business registration, financial statements, tax payment records
• Asset sales — real estate sale contract, proof of payment received
• Gifts — gift agreement, plus documentation tracing the donor's own source of funds

What people commonly overlook

For gifted funds, reviewers increasingly ask about the donor's source of funds as well. If the amounts, dates, and account names in your source documents don't line up with the actual remittance records, a thick file of documents still fails to persuade. How far you need to substantiate depends on your nationality and fund structure, so confirm the standard that applies to your case through a consultation.

From Foreign Investment Notification to D-8 Application

The full sequence

Detailed standards for the foreign investment notification system are available from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the National Law Information Center.

What goes wrong when the order gets scrambled

A common mistake is sending the money before filing the foreign investment notification. The notification won't necessarily be rejected, but you'll face an extra layer of explaining what the funds actually are. There are also cases where the investment isn't deposited into the corporate account in time after registration, blocking the foreign-invested company registration. This is exactly where people going it alone most often have to backtrack.

Application Documents and How to Submit Them

Basic document checklist

For the business plan, persuasiveness matters before length.

There are three ways to submit

• Applying from abroad — visa application at the competent Korean diplomatic mission (embassy or consulate)
• Applying within Korea — book a visit through HiKorea, then file at the competent immigration office
• Filing through a representative — submission via an administrative agent registered as an authorized immigration service provider

For domestic filing, some offices have visit reservations backed up by weeks, so which jurisdiction you file in can change your entire timeline. Processing times vary by immigration office, and we help you find and proceed through the fastest route.

Where outcomes diverge

Two people can submit the same documents, and one gets a request for supplementary materials while the other passes on the first try. The difference isn't the number of documents — it's whether the fund flow and the business substance connect into one coherent story. When that narrative is weak, you may receive a shorter period of stay or see your timeline slip due to additional substantiation requests.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1. If I just wire KRW 100 million, will I get the D-8 visa?

The amount is only the starting line. The source of funds, the remittance purpose, and proof of genuine business operations must all be in place, and outcomes can vary case by case.

Q2. Can I send the investment in multiple installments?

Yes. However, the sender name and purpose designation must match across all transfers, and recognition can hinge on how the installments are structured.

Q3. Can I invest with money I've already earned in Korea?

In principle, investment funds must be brought in from abroad. Whether domestically acquired funds are recognized depends on your status of stay and the nature of the funds, so confirmation with the competent authority is needed.

Q4. Can I enter Korea carrying cash and invest with it?

Yes, if you declared it at customs and received a foreign exchange declaration certificate. For cash brought in without declaration, there is effectively no remedy after the fact.

Q5. Where do I submit the documents?

If you're abroad, at the competent Korean diplomatic mission; if you're in Korea, at the competent immigration office after booking a visit through HiKorea. Filing through a registered administrative agent is also possible.

Q6. How much does professional representation cost?

Fees vary by case, so we provide an exact quote during the free consultation. Government charges consist of officially published fees plus administrative processing costs.

Need Expert Guidance?

For the D-8, explaining your funds matters more than the number of documents you submit. The most regrettable cases are those who come to us after already sending money under the wrong purpose designation. If you haven't remitted yet, we can structure it properly in advance; if the money has already been sent, we can design the substantiation strategy together.

VISION Administrative Office

• Phone: 02-363-2251
• KakaoTalk: alexkorea
• Email: [email protected]
• Address: 3F, Sungwoo Building, 324 Toegye-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul (04614), Republic of Korea

Your first consultation is free, and we handle the entire process — from fund structure review and foreign investment notification to company formation and the D-8 application.

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