What actually happens, in order.
Korean entity setup is three separate government processes wearing a trench coat: a bank filing, a court registration and a tax office registration. Here is the sequence, and who does what at each stage.
From first emailto a registered entity.
The sequence below is the standard route for a foreign-invested company. A branch or liaison office follows the same shape with a lighter filing at step three and no capital remittance.
- Step 1
Scoping
Tell us what you plan to do in Korea, who will own the entity and whether anyone needs a visa. We come back with the structure that fits — corporation, branch or liaison office — and a fixed professional fee.
- Step 2
Documents
We send a checklist specific to your case: shareholder and director identity documents, the notarisation or apostille your jurisdiction requires, proposed company names, business scope and capital.
- Step 3
Foreign investment report
We file the foreign investment report with the designated foreign exchange bank, or the equivalent notification for a branch or liaison office.
- Step 4
Capital remittance
You remit the investment amount into the account opened for it. This step does not apply to branch or liaison offices.
- Step 5
Court registration
Incorporation documents are executed and filed at the competent court. The registration tax and court charges fall due here and are billed at cost.
- Step 6
Tax office
We apply for the business registration certificate at the district tax office — or the tax identification number for a liaison office.
- Step 7
Handover
You receive the corporate certificates, the seal and a filing calendar. If you want us to keep the books, the accounting engagement starts here.
Timing depends on how fast your home jurisdiction notarises documents and on the bank’s review — the parts outside our control are the parts worth asking about early. We will give you a realistic estimate for your case in the scoping reply.
Your side of the workis mostly documents.
A general list for incorporation by a foreign shareholder. We send a version cut down to your actual case in the scoping reply — bringing everything below is rarely necessary, and some cases need more.
Identity of shareholders and directors
- Passport copy for each individual shareholder and director
- Certificate of incorporation or business registration for a corporate shareholder
- Signature certification, or home-country notarisation / apostille where required
The company you want
- Candidate company names, in Korean and English
- Business scope — what the company will actually be permitted to do
- Capital amount and how it will be contributed
- Shareholding structure
Korea-side essentials
- A Korean business address — our virtual office qualifies
- Foreign investment report details and the capital remittance route
Which documents need an apostille, and which need only notarisation, depends on whether your country is party to the Apostille Convention. We will tell you which applies to you rather than asking you to guess.
Ready to start the clock?
The first step is a scoping reply — structure, fee, government charges and the document list for your jurisdiction. It costs nothing and it is where most of the guesswork disappears.