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Registration of foreign-invested companies (when invested by a foreign corporation)
When establishing a foreign-invested enterprise, the investor can be a foreign corporation or a foreign individual.
Advantages of investing with a foreign entity
- Because it is governed by national laws, you can benefit from small business registration, venture company registration, and more.
- Unlike a branch office, which can only operate within the headquarters’ business area, you can freely operate in any field and create an independent company name.
- Because it is an independent legal entity, if something goes wrong, the foreign subsidiary is only liable for the amount of its investment, not the foreign headquarters.
- It’s easier to get a D8 visa than an individual investor.
- You can send employees on D8 visas and rotate them within the visa authorization limit.
Disadvantages of investing by a foreign entity
- The setup process is a bit complicated
Foreign Investment Company Registration Process
A U.S. corporation invests KRW 100 million to establish a foreign-invested corporation in Korea.
A U.S. corporation that has already established and operated a branch office in Korea decided to establish a foreign-invested corporation in order to register as a small business.
He also wanted to have two representatives, one from the U.S. headquarters and one from Korea, but each would be registered as a representative to expedite decision-making and company business.
| Procedure | Authorities | Responsible for |
| Preparing an Apostille of Incorporation | Administrative offices | Administrator |
| Foreign Investment Declaration and Bank Account Opening | Foreign Exchange Banking | |
| ⇒ Transferring Investment Funds | Foreign exchange bank | |
| ⇒ Registration of Incorporation | Court Registry | 法律師 |
| ⇒ Obtaining a License (Related Industries) | Jurisdictional office | administrator |
| ⇒ Filing for Incorporation and Issuance of Business License | Tax Office | |
| ⇒ Issuance of Foreign Investment Company Registration Certificate | Foreign Exchange Bank | |
| ⇒ Open Corporate Bank Account | Foreign Exchange Bank | |
| Setting Up a Tax Custodian | Tax Office | Tax accountants |
1. Declare foreign investment and open a remittance account
The whole process starts with filing a foreign investment notification with the Foreign Exchange Bank. After filing, a temporary account will be opened with the bank and you will receive a letter with remittance information.
We have a good relationship with banks, so all you need is a copy of your passport and basic information about your investment company and you can open an account immediately.
2. Prepare an apostille for a foreign entity
At the same time, prepare the apostille of documents proving the existence of the foreign entity you are investing in and the documents required for registration. These documents need to be prepared very carefully and should be done with an experienced professional, because if the dates and order of issuance are incorrect, the apostille must be redone.
You should have roughly the following documentation
- Certificate of Foreign Incorporation
- Articles of Incorporation
- Shareholder List
- Proof of identification of the foreign entity representative
- Inauguration acceptance letter
- Seal declaration
- Power of Attorney
3. Foreign Investment Corporation Registration
Once the overseas corporation’s apostille documents arrive in Korea, remittance documents, office address in Korea, documents of the person to be appointed as the representative in Korea, articles of incorporation, and minutes of the promoters’ meeting are prepared, the corporation will be registered at the court registry with jurisdiction over the office address.
The registration process takes approximately 3 to 4 days.
4. file for incorporation and issue a business license
Once you’ve registered your business, you’ll need to apply for a business license from your local tax office.
If your business requires a license, you need to obtain and attach a notification, registration, license, etc. from the competent authorities in advance. Also, appoint a tax custodian to attach the notification.
5. Issuance of Foreign Investment Company Registration Certificate and opening of corporate account
After obtaining a business license, visit the foreign exchange bank where you initially filed your investment to obtain a certificate of registration for a foreign-invested enterprise. After opening a corporate account, transfer the capital held by the bank to the corporate account.
Once you’ve gone through these steps, you’re done registering your foreign-invested company.
As we’ve outlined, registering a foreign investment entity involves a number of procedures, documents, and steps that must be taken in an orderly fashion.
This is especially difficult and time-consuming for generalists who do not understand foreign documents. We recommend that you always work with an experienced professional.
6. apply for a D8 visa (if needed)
You can apply for a D8 visa for a CEO, senior manager, or essential specialty worker who will be working in Korea. The visa can be applied for immediately or while the business is in operation.
If you plan to apply for a D8 visa, your entity must be established in accordance with the visa requirements. For example, you cannot apply for a visa if you are established in a shared office, and you will need to provide more details, such as the name of the remitter, the remittance process, documentation of the source of funds, and photos to prove your office.
Inquire about establishing a company for foreigners already in Korea
- 외국인 한국비자 / 정착서비스 전문기업
- 영어, 중국어, 일본어, 스페인어, 몽골어 상담
- 본사 부담없이 아포스티유에 필요한 서류 작성 제공
- 서류준비, 투자신고, 은행 계좌개설, 사업자등록증 등 모든 과정 일괄 대행
- 사무실, 법인등기, 세무대리인 설정까지 한번에 OK
Provide samples for accurate documentation
- 외국인 투자신고
- 외국환 거래은행 지정신청
- 정관 작성 서비스
- 취임승낙서 작성 서비스
- 법인설립 등기
- 사업자등록증 발급
- 외투기업등록증 발급
- 은행계좌개설
- 비자발급
- 세무대행
