International Transfer Rules for International Residents in Korea

Several years ago, I wanted to transfer a couple of hundred dollars home to pay some small bills.  I went to the local bank where the teller told me that it would be impossible without bringing proof of income, he then proceeded to show me what the proof should look like by producing an income statement that another customer had provided, the punchline was I knew the customer although I hadn't previously  known his income.

Why is it so hard to transfer money home?

1. In Korea there was a cultural aversion to importing.  Until 1986 foreign cars and cigarettes were illegal.  If you work in Korea and send the money home, your service is an export from your home country, older people may think this is wrong, although if you look at the young, this has changed fast;
2. Like many currencies in the world the Korean Won is subject to exchange controls;
3. A complicated legal and regulatory framework;

The easiest thing to do is take your passport, ARC, proof of employment and housing to the bank when you open the account, register this bank as your primary foreign exchange bank and register for online transactions, then you can transfer money home by ATM or Internet Banking.  If you do this you can transfer, spend or withdraw a total of US $50,000 a year.

This process is cumbersome, anti-competitive and unnecessary but it is the rule.