South Korea has once again tightened its COVID-19 testing regime for short-term visitors, mandating that travellers must now have their on-arrival PCR test samples taken at the airport upon landing, rather than having the additional flexibility of doing so at an approved clinic by the end of the following day.
This new edict applies for arrivals from 10th August 2022 until at least 9th September 2022, and is subject to further extension, as the country’s latest COVID-19 wave shows no signs of abating.
Thankfully, post-test isolation is still not required, despite international confusion over this rule.
However, it does remain a recommendation that you remain in your residence or accommodation until you receive a negative result from the on-arrival test.
New on-arrival test process
From 10th August 2022 until at least 9th September 2022, all short-term visitors (tourists) must complete their on-arrival PCR test at the airport when touching down in Seoul (Incheon Airport), Busan (Gimhae Airport) or Jeju Airport.
All three of these cities now feature direct flights from Singapore.

Citizens and residents of South Korea are still permitted to take their on-arrival tests at an approved clinic by 11.59pm the day after their flight’s arrival date, but this option is temporarily not available to visitors.
Here are the booking links for the on-arrival test at the various airport locations.
South Korea Airport
On-arrival test booking
Airport | Booking Link |
Seoul Incheon Airport T1 East T1 West T2 East T2 West |
|
Busan Gimhae Airport 1 location |
|
Jeju Airport 1 location |
The cost of on-arrival PCR testing in South Korea is currently:
- At Seoul Incheon: KRW 80,000 (around S$84)
- At Busan or Jeju: KRW65,000 (around S$68)
On-arrival testing in South Korea applies regardless of age or nationality.

Your on-arrival test result should also be registered at the Q-code website, which is also used for recodring pre-departure test information.

Do note that taking the a COVID-19 PCR test on arrival in South Korea is mandatory. If you fail to take the test, you could face to up to one year of imprisonment or a fine of up to KRW10 million (S$10,500).
Isolation is not mandatory
When South Korea shortened its on-arrival test requirement from three days to one day in late July, there was some confusion over whether it was a requirement to self-isolate while awaiting a negative result, with some sites stating a recommendation, and others implying it was mandatory.
Things haven’t got much clearer for travellers!
The Singapore Embassy to South Korea states isolation is recommended, as does the Australian Government, while Singapore Airlines, the Korea Tourism Organization and the UK Government all maintain that it’s a must.
What a mess!
It’s taken some time for us to get an official response from the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), but we can confirm that self-isolation is still only recommended.
This has also been confirmed by reader reports for those who have travelled to South Korea in the last couple of weeks.
Here’s what we know from MOFA’s response to us:
- After the on-arrival test, you are recommended to proceed directly to your residence or accommodation and self-isolate until a negative result is received.
- You can proceed to your accommodation by public transport, including on trains, while waiting for the result.
- You can proceed to your accommodation in another city in South Korea by domestic flight, while waiting for the result.

What if the on-arrival test is positive?
It’s very important to remember that if your on-arrival COVID-19 PCR test result is positive, a mandatory seven-day quarantine period is required in South Korea.
Korean nationals and Alien Registration Card (ARC) holders may self-quarantine at home, however short-term visitors must serve the quarantine at an allocated facility.
Non-residents who have recovered from COVID-19 but still test positive on arrival are also required to isolate for seven days, regardless of medical documentation of a prior COVID-19 diagnosis.
We therefore strongly recommend that if you have recently recovered from COVID-19, you opt for a PCR pre-departure test in Singapore or your origin country, to avoid the likelihood of testing positive on arrival and having to serve forced quarantine.
Pre-departure testing remains
South Korea is one of the few countries popular with Singapore residents that still imposes a pre-departure testing requirement (though vaccination is no longer mandatory).
Since May 2022, those arriving in South Korea from overseas must take one of the following pre-departure tests:
- a PCR test within 2 days of departure; or
- an ART test (clinic only) within 1 day of departure.
For example, if your flight from Singapore to Seoul departs at 11.15pm (23:15) on Wednesday 17th August 2022, you must take your pre-departure test as follows:
- PCR: On or after 0.00am on Monday 15th August 2022
- ART: On or after 0.00am on Tuesday 16th August 2022
The timing applies prior to departure at the first embarkation point in a continuous journey to South Korea (i.e. where you do not leave the airport premises at any transit points).
Don’t forget to check our comprehensive and continually updated list of the cheapest pre-departure PCR and ART tests in Singapore when planning your trip to South Korea.
For most of our readers that means the best option will be to have an ART test within 1 day of the departure time of your non-stop flight from Singapore.
Children under the age of six (by date of birth on the entry date to South Korea) are exempt from pre-departure testing, provided they are accompanied by adults who submit valid negative PDT results.
Korean nationals and long-term visa holders who have recovered from COVID-19 within 10 to 40 days of their departure date are also exempt from pre-departure testing, provided they have a recovery memo, however this does not apply to tourists and visitors.
Tele-ARTs not allowed
While you can now take a supervised pre-departure self-swab ART test by video call in Singapore, the requirements for those taking an antigen test to travel to South Korea state that it must be “taken at a hospital or clinic”.
The requirements go on to be even more explicit about remote supervised tests.
“All forms of self-administered test such as remote supervised ART or tele-ART are not valid”
Embassy of the Republic of Korea to the Republic of Singapore
This is an unfortunate stance for those using the antigen method for pre-departure testing, since a trip to a clinic will have to be made before departure.
What about transits?
If you’re transiting in South Korea on a connecting itinerary without clearing immigration (i.e. with onward boarding pass and any luggage checked through to your final destination), you are exempt from the country’s pre-departure and on-arrival testing requirements.
Only the requirements of your final destination (if any) will apply. Transit time must not exceed 24 hours.
Singapore – South Korea trip process
Here’s the latest process for those travelling from Singapore (and other countries) quarantine-free to South Korea, for arrivals from 10th August 2022 (latest changes highlighted).
Eligibility & Process
Singapore South Korea

- Apply for an Electronic Travel Authorisation at least 24 hours in advance*
- Take a pre-departure COVID-19 PCR test up to 2 days before departure, or a clinic-based ART test up to 1 day before departure
- Obtain a Q-code, which must be presented upon arrival
- Take a COVID-19 PCR test on arrival at the airport in Seoul, Busan or Jeju, with a recommendation to self-isolate until a negative result is received
- Upload your on-arrival test result via the Q-code website
* Not applicable for South Korean citizens or permanent residents
Singapore – South Korea trip testing costs
Here’s how round-trip testing costs from Singapore to South Korea and back currently look.
Singapore South Korea
|
Test | Cost |
SG pre-departure (clinic ART) | From S$18 |
S. Korea arrival (airport PCR) | ~S$84 |
Total | From ~S$102 |
Travellers can now expect to part with just over S$100 on a round-trip to South Korea, a far cry from the S$500+ per person we saw when the VTL with Singapore was first established and multiple PCR tests were the norm.
Currently there are only two COVID-19 tests required on a round-trip from Singapore to South Korea and back, which will hopefully reduce further soon.
Summary
Unfortunately quarantine-free travel to South Korea is slowly becoming more arduous, having been progressively simplified in the first half of 2022, with this latest requirement for tourists to take their on-arrival PCR test at the airport when flying into Seoul, Busan or Jeju.
Travellers continue to be recommended to self-isolate until a negative on-arrival test result is received, though this is not mandatory, despite significant confusion on the topic.
You can also take public transport and/or domestic flights to your final destination, even before your PCR results come through.
In the worst case, a mandatory seven-day quarantine at a designated facility is still imposed for visitors who test positive.
(Cover Photo: YNA)
Thanks Andrew, I’m flying on 17/08, two queries though, I already registered in ICN airport, will I be able to retrieve the results on the website??
If I’m staying for 4 night and god forbid I test positive do I just miss my flight or isolate 3 nights and be able to leave the the country without breaking any laws?
Thanks
Sam
Hilarious, at if I’d be willing to take a PCR test to enter any country in this day and age. They’ve got a severe case of covidophobia, only curable by getting your head out of your ass and joining the real world.
Does Gimpo have covid testing facilities?
We are flying HND to GMP.
No I believe in this case you’ll have to test at an approved clinic by 11.59pm on the day after your arrival.
Hi Andrew, is it confirmed that there is no testing facillity at Gimpo Airport? Where should I take the PCR Test then?
Thanks Andrew. I arrive at Incheon airport in the early morning around 7 am, and I assume after customs clearance and the PCR test etc will mean I’m likely on my way to my Seoul hotel by around 9-10 am or so, unless there is a major delay.
Hotels allow check in only around 1 pm or thereafter, usually, and sometimes even later. Does that mean I’d need to book a hotel room which allows me early check-in, as I’m expected to isolate until the test results? Or I simply go on with my activities since there’s no room to isolate until the afternoon, anyway? It seems that there is no clear guideline on such an instance.
Hi Salmon, I have the same situation as you – may I know if you have been to Seoul already? Can share any advice?
I took the test arriving in Korea a week later (it was at the end of June) at the tuberculosis center, they agreed to send me my results but they never sent them. I did not know that this result should also be recorded, but I repeat, they never sent it to me. In addition, the QR page does not load.
i am planning fly to Jeju after arriving ICN airport in the same day, I have to do PCR test again in Jeju after done my test in Seoul?
No there is no testing for domestic travel in S Korea.
1. How soon after my flight’s scheduled arrival time should I book the PCR test? 2. Can I pay the 80000 won fee with an international credit card or is only cash acceptable? 3. Do I need to buy a Korean SIM card and phone number before the PCR test?
Hi, i am flying to Busan. Will be transiting in Seoul airport. It is not connecting and overlay time is 4 hours. So where should i have my arrival pcr trst? seoul or Busan?
Seoul
Andrew, meaning i will have to give up my same day flight to busan and stay night in seoul while waiting for pcr result? Thanks!
No need, you can proceed on a domestic flight while still awaiting the result.
Hi andrew, can the pcr be taken at busan instead as the overlay time for my flight is only 3 hours. I am worried there might not be sufficient time to take the pcr at seoul airport.
Hi Andrew, you strongly recommended to take pcr in the origin country if I recently recovered from Covid to avoid being quarantined in Korea. But on-arrival PCR is mandatory in Korea. So how would I be able to get around doing on-arrival PCR if I opted for PCR in the origin country?
You would not be able to, but if you were negative on a PCR pre-departure you are likely also to be negative on arrival.
A negative ART pre-departure does not mean a PCR will still be negative for recently recovered folk (PCR can still be positive for ~3 mths).
hi i’ll will be going to jeju but i’ll transit from incheon so do take my pcr test at incheon or jeju and if after i’ve come back from jeju i’ll be going over to busan straight do i need to take another pcr test again at incheon before heading to busan ?
Hello Andrew, thank you so much for this information! It really answers so many of the open questions!
Here another one (sorry): I arrive in Seoul Airport and am planning to take a fast train to Busan immediately after I collect my luggage and get tested in Seoul airport. Am I allowed to take the fast train to Busan while still waiting for my covid test results? You mentioned we can take a flight to Busan while waiting, but is it the same allowance for trains as well?
Hi, anyone visited Jeju recently? Just wanna check the PCR type at Jeju airport.
Hi Andrew and all, I will be travelling to Jeju on 16th Sep night flight. There is no requirement to do pre departure test for South Korea now.
I got covid19 on 27 Jun. Do you all suggest that I still do pre departure test?
Jeju airport is doing deep throat testing. If I want to do pcr test first before I fly to play safe, should I do the deep throat or just the normal nose swab pcr?