Starting a Company in Korea: A Guide to KRW 100 Million Foreign Investment, Registration, Timing and Costs

Korea is one of Asia’s important consumer markets, manufacturing bases and international trade centres.

In recent years, more businesses in cross-border trade, e-commerce, technology, consulting, brand management, supply chains and international services have considered establishing their own Korean corporations.

However, overseas investors entering Korea for the first time often have several questions:

Can foreigners establish a company in Korea directly?

Why do many foreign-invested company plans require KRW 100 million?

Is the capital a service fee?

Do I need to travel to Korea to register a company?

What steps are required from investment notification to actual business operations?

This article explains the key aspects of forming a foreign-invested company under Korea’s current foreign investment framework.

1. Can Foreigners Establish a Company in Korea?

Yes.

Foreign individuals and overseas corporations established under foreign laws can invest in Korean companies in accordance with applicable Korean laws.

For foreign investors planning long-term business operations in Korea, a common approach is:

Korean local incorporation + foreign-invested company registration

The entity is a Korean corporation established under Korean law. Qualifying foreign investment also allows it to register under the Foreign Investment Promotion Act.

InvestKOREA, Korea’s official investment promotion agency, explains that foreign investors seeking to participate in management may qualify where they:

Invest at least KRW 100 million and, in principle, acquire at least 10% of the Korean company’s voting shares.

They may then register a foreign-invested company under the foreign direct investment (FDI) framework.

Our current standard foreign-invested company plan therefore uses:

KRW 100,000,000 in capital

as its basis.

2. Must Every Korean Company Have KRW 100 Million in Capital?

This is a frequently misunderstood point.

The answer is:

Not every Korean company registration is legally subject to a minimum capital requirement of KRW 100 million.

The KRW 100 million threshold primarily relates to foreign direct investment (FDI) and foreign-invested company status.

Under Korea’s current foreign investment framework, investors who invest at least KRW 100 million and meet the relevant shareholding requirements may complete investment notification and foreign-invested company registration under the Foreign Investment Promotion Act.

In other words:

An ordinary Korean corporation

and

a foreign-invested company under the Foreign Investment Promotion Act

are not identical concepts.

If the aim is simply to establish a Korean corporation, the structure can be designed separately according to the business, shareholders and operating purpose.

For a complete standard foreign-invested company structure, our current reference plan uses:

Registered capital: KRW 100 million

Registered address: Seoul Gasan Digital Complex

Foreign investment notification + Korean incorporation + foreign-invested company registration

3. Is the KRW 100 Million a Registration Service Fee?

No.

This distinction is essential.

KRW 100 million is capital invested in the Korean company, not a registration fee paid to a service provider.

Once invested, the funds generally belong to the Korean company as corporate assets.

Under the officially published incorporation process, foreign investors may remit funds to a temporary account at a Korean foreign exchange bank and use them to subscribe for company shares in accordance with the investment procedures.

Subject to applicable requirements, the capital may be used for normal business operations after incorporation.

Therefore:

Capital ≠ service fees

Capital ≠ government charges

Capital is money invested in the company

This is one of the most important points to understand before proceeding.

4. What Is the Standard Registration Process?

The company formation process currently published by InvestKOREA includes:

Foreign investment notification

↓

Remittance of investment funds

↓

Corporate incorporation registration

↓

Industry permits, where required

↓

Notification of incorporation and business registration

↓

Corporate bank account

↓

Foreign-invested company registration

Compared with Korean domestic investors, foreign investors principally have two additional steps:

Foreign investment notification

and

foreign-invested company registration

.

5. Step One: Foreign Investment Notification

Foreign direct investment notification generally needs to be completed before the capital is remitted.

Under the applicable procedures, notification can be handled through:

KOTRA

or

an authorized Korean foreign exchange bank

.

Individual investors generally need identification documents such as a passport.

Corporate investors generally need incorporation certificates, business registration documents or other evidence of the overseas entity’s legal existence.

A power of attorney is also required when an agent handles the procedures.

Some overseas documents may require:

Notarization

An apostille

Korean consular authentication

Korean translation

The requirements depend on the investor’s country and the type of document.

6. Step Two: Remit Capital from Overseas to Korea

After investment notification, the capital must be remitted for foreign investment purposes.

One practical point is particularly important:

The source of funds and remittance route must be clear.

Funds should normally be remitted from the corresponding account of the declared individual investor or overseas corporate shareholder to the Korean investment account.

The remittance must clearly state its investment purpose.

This provides a complete record of the investment funds for subsequent incorporation and foreign-invested company registration.

Korea’s official process also identifies remittance to a Korean foreign exchange bank as an important incorporation step.

An unrelated third-party account should therefore not be used casually in place of the investor’s account.

7. Step Three: Corporate Incorporation Registration

Once the capital requirements have been met, formal incorporation can proceed.

The incorporation information and documents typically include:

Company name
Registered address
Business scope
Registered capital
Shareholding structure
Directors and representatives
Articles of incorporation
Foreign investment documentation
Evidence of capital
Authenticated shareholder documents

and other required materials.

The application is then submitted to the Korean court registry.

InvestKOREA’s standard process gives an indicative processing time for corporate registration alone of approximately 2–3 days. The overall project also depends on overseas document preparation, authentication, banking, translation and case-specific circumstances.Investment in Korea

8. Step Four: Business Registration

After incorporation, the company must also complete the following with the Korean tax authority:

Notification of incorporation

and

business registration

to obtain its business registration certificate.

This is an important step toward actual business operations.

Issuing invoices, handling taxes and conducting transactions are all connected with business registration.

The official process indicates that registration is handled by the tax authority and may normally take several business days.Investment in Korea

9. Step Five: The Corporate Bank Account

After incorporation, a corporate operating account must also be arranged.

The temporary capital account is connected to the formal corporate account according to the bank’s procedures.

Under its know-your-customer, anti-money-laundering and internal review procedures, the bank will generally examine:

Business activities
Shareholders
Ultimate beneficial owners
Representatives
Source of funds
Registered address
Expected transactions

and related information.

Completed corporate registration does not mean that a bank account will automatically be opened.

The final decision remains subject to the Korean bank’s review.

10. Step Six: Formal Foreign-Invested Company Registration

Foreign-invested company registration must also be completed after incorporation.

Korean official rules generally require registration within the prescribed period after payment for the investment. InvestKOREA currently specifies within 60 days.Investment in Korea

This completes the registration chain establishing the company’s foreign-invested status.

Therefore:

Holding a business registration certificate alone does not mean that the entire foreign investment process is complete.

11. How Long Does the Entire Process Take?

Some individual steps in the official process may take only a few days.

For example:

Investment remittance: approximately 2–3 days
Corporate registration: approximately 2–3 days
Business registration: several business days

Official materials note that the standard process can be completed relatively quickly under ideal conditions, with complete documents and no special licensing issues.Investment in Korea

In practice, overseas clients must also consider:

Preparing overseas documents
Apostilles or consular authentication
Korean translation
Bank review
Cross-border capital remittance
Registered address
Number of shareholders
Business scope
Special industry permits

and other case-specific issues.

Our current practical reference timeframe is therefore:

Approximately 15–30 business days.

This better reflects overseas investors’ actual circumstances than counting only government processing time.

12. How Much Does Incorporation Cost?

Our current reference plan is as follows:

Statutory Korean Government Taxes

KRW 480,000

For incorporation-related taxes and charges under the current standard plan.

Complete Preparation and Incorporation Services

KRW 4,000,000

The current plan includes:

Foreign investment notification
Coordination of overseas document notarization
Professional Korean translation
Preparation of incorporation documents
Corporate registration at the Korean court registry
Business registration with the tax office
Coordination of foreign-invested company registration and related procedures

Bookkeeping and Tax Filing for the First Three Months

KRW 1,600,000

Includes basic routine accounting and tax filing for the first three months after incorporation.

After three months, ongoing monthly fees will be confirmed based on:

Import and export invoice volume
Bank transactions
Employee numbers
Business volume
Accounting complexity

and the company’s actual circumstances.

One Year of Registered Address Service in Seoul

KRW 1,500,000

The current standard plan provides a registered address in:

Seoul Gasan Digital Complex

.

13. Current Reference Total

The reference total for the standard plan is:

KRW 7,580,000

This includes:

Statutory government taxes
Company preparation and incorporation services
Accounting and tax support for the first three months
One year of registered address service in Seoul

Please note:

The KRW 100 million in capital is not included in the KRW 7.58 million service quotation.

Capital is invested in the client’s own Korean company.

The current quotation is based on:

Registered capital of KRW 100 million

and

a registered address in Seoul Gasan Digital Complex

.

Increasing capital, changing the city or address, adding shareholders or requiring special permits may necessitate recalculation of government taxes and fees and professional service charges.

14. Why Do Overseas Businesses Choose Gasan Digital Complex?

Gasan Digital Complex is one of Seoul’s important business and industrial office districts.

For businesses in:

Cross-border e-commerce
International trade
IT and technology
Brand management
Consulting
Supply chains
General business services

an established commercial district is generally a more suitable operating base than a purely residential address.

Our current standard foreign-invested company plan offers a registered address in this district.

Clients with their own Korean office, or plans to use an office elsewhere in Seoul or another Korean city, can have the incorporation plan revised for their actual address.

15. Which Businesses May Benefit from Korean Incorporation?

The first group is businesses already operating in Japan, mainland China, Hong Kong, Singapore or other markets and seeking to enter Korea.

For example, an existing overseas company with growing Korean customers, suppliers or local activities may benefit from a more stable local entity.

The second group is:

Cross-border trade and e-commerce businesses.

For Korean procurement, sales, imports and exports, e-commerce or brand development, a local company can help coordinate contracts, taxes, banking and local partnerships.

The third group is:

Individual investors and international entrepreneurs planning long-term Korean operations.

Short-term market research alone does not necessarily require immediate incorporation.

However, a Korean corporation may be worth considering when establishing a local team, signing long-term contracts, making actual sales or maintaining ongoing operations.

16. What Is Required After Incorporation?

Registration is only the beginning.

Actual operations involve ongoing requirements such as:

Bookkeeping

Corporate taxation

Banking

Maintaining the registered address

Payroll and social insurance

Changes to company details

Import and export activities

and any industry-specific licences.

When choosing incorporation services, consider not only whether the company can be registered, but also:

Whether ongoing local support is available afterward.

HAKUDATSU GLOBAL’s current plan includes the first three months of accounting and tax support. We can also coordinate further local services based on actual operating needs.

17. Questions to Confirm Before Registering

Before starting, investors should clarify:

1. Whether the investor is an individual or overseas company

2. Planned investment amount

3. Proposed shareholding structure

4. Main business activities

5. Whether a Korean registered address is needed

6. Whether a Korean bank account is needed

7. Plans to hire employees in Korea

8. Whether the industry requires permits

9. Expected start date for Korean operations

10. Long-term plans for the Korean market

Clarifying these points before designing the ownership, capital, address and incorporation process is more practical than simply registering an empty shell company first.

18. Look Beyond Successful Registration

For foreign investors, a complete incorporation plan should cover at least:

Investment notification

→ Capital remittance

→ Corporate registration

→ Business registration

→ Bank account

→ Foreign-invested company registration

→ Accounting, taxation and ongoing operations

Together, these form a complete market-entry process.

InvestKOREA’s published foreign-invested company formation process likewise covers all steps from investment notification through foreign-invested company registration.

Businesses preparing to enter Korea should therefore plan their

business model, capital, banking, taxes and subsequent operations

together before incorporation.

Explore the Complete Korean Foreign-Invested Company Plan

HAKUDATSU GLOBAL now offers Korean foreign-invested company formation and local operating support.

Current reference plan:

Registered address in Seoul Gasan Digital Complex
KRW 100 million foreign investment capital plan
Indicative timeframe of approximately 15–30 business days
Incorporation + investment notification + tax + banking coordination + foreign-invested company registration + initial accounting support

👉 View our Korean Foreign-Invested Company Formation project: Seoul incorporation and foreign investment registration

👉 Request a detailed quotation for Korean company formation