Short version: I’m a Japanese passport holder, and Japan is on Korea’s K-ETA exemption list, so I don’t need K-ETA. But exempt or not, I still have to file a separate form, the e-Arrival Card, every single time I visit — unless I pay for K-ETA anyway and skip it for three years. I found that out the inconvenient way in 2025, and like some friends of mine, I am switching to K-ETA before my next trip.
What this is based on: my own entries through both Gimpo and Incheon airports in 2025, using the e-Arrival Card on my phone each time. I have not used K-ETA myself yet. I am planning to apply before my next trip, and I will update this post once I have.
Quick answer, before you leave home
- Check whether your country is on Korea’s K-ETA exemption list. Japan is, as of July 2026, through December 31, 2026 (source: k-eta.go.kr)
- If you are exempt, you still need the e-Arrival Card, unless you pay ₩10,000 for K-ETA anyway
- Have your Korea address ready in full before you fly. The hotel name alone was not accepted for me
- Do not assume you will be asked to show your QR code on arrival. I was not
- If you are flying Asiana, double-check your terminal. It moved from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2 at Incheon on January 14, 2026
- Japan has been eligible for Korea’s automated immigration gates (Smart Entry Service) since March 16, 2026 — worth registering on arrival if this is your first trip since then
K-ETA and the e-Arrival Card are not the same thing
Japan is one of the countries temporarily exempt from K-ETA. As of July 2026, that exemption runs through December 31, 2026, confirmed on the official K-ETA portal (k-eta.go.kr). Exempt means exempt — you do not apply, and you do not pay the ₩10,000 fee.
What the exemption does not cover is the e-Arrival Card. This is a separate form, and it asks for the same information every time: your flight number, your address in Korea, how long you are staying. Travelers with K-ETA skip this step entirely. Exempt travelers like me, without K-ETA, fill it out on every single entry.
Seems still both paper and digital formats were in use, and that no official announcement had ended the paper form. I could not find anything published more recently that settles it either way, and I could not find an airline-level statement about Japan–Korea routes specifically.
Please check yourself on the authority sites, when you want to use paper form.
On my own flights to Korea from Japan, I do not remember being handed a paper form — though I would not swear to it. My own conclusion: do not plan around getting one on the plane. Fill out the e-Arrival Card before you fly regardless. It is free, it takes minutes, and it means you are not standing in the aisle hoping a flight attendant hands you a form that may not exist anymore.
What filling e-Arrival Card out was actually like
I completed the e-Arrival Card on my phone, in the terminal, on my flights to Gimpo and to Incheon. My final is Oct 2025, so far.
Scanning the passport photo page worked fine.
The part that caused problems was the Korea address field: the hotel name by itself was rejected, and I had to go back into my hotel confirmation email to copy the full street address while the form was still open. Doing that on a small screen, with people waiting behind me, is not something I would choose to repeat. If you do this from home before your flight instead, save yourself that scramble and have the hotel’s full address copied somewhere you can paste it from directly.
Why I’m switching to K-ETA next time
₩10,000 is about ¥1,100. Weighed against redoing that address field on my phone at the airport every single trip, it stopped being a difficult decision. Some friend of mine who visit Korea so often had already switched to K-ETA, and hearing how much that address field had bothered me made up my mind. K-ETA also lasts three years, so this is a one-time ₩10,000, not something I pay on every visit.
What happened at immigration
I was not asked to show my QR code at either airport, and that matches Korea’s own official guidance: the Ministry of Justice’s e-Arrival Card FAQ states you can clear entry inspection even without a downloaded file or screenshot of your e-Arrival Card. My passport was scanned, and that was enough both times. I would still save a screenshot before you land, in case an officer asks, or in case you need it for something separate, like a Q-Code health check during an outbreak period.
Automated gates (Smart Entry Service): I have not used this myself
Japan is also eligible for Korea’s Smart Entry Service, the automated immigration gates that let you skip the staffed counter after a one-time registration. Japan was added to the eligible list on March 16, 2026, when Korea expanded the program from 18 to 42 countries. My last entry through Incheon was in October 2025 — before Japan was added — so I have not registered for this myself, and I cannot tell you what the process feels like in practice.
What I can tell you from checking official and airline-adjacent sources: registration is free, one-time, and done at a counter at some airports like Incheon (Terminal 1 or Terminal 2) using your passport, a fingerprint scan, and a photo.
It is separate from ICN SmartPass, which is a different, airline-limited fast-track system for the security line, not immigration. Once you are registered, the enrollment is valid until your passport expires, and you can use the automated gates on any future entry into Korea, not just at the airport where you registered.
I plan to register on my next trip. I will report back once I have.
This works well if / build in buffer if
This works well if you already know your K-ETA exemption status and do not mind filling out one more form online. Build in buffer if you are traveling with family — every traveler, including children, needs their own e-Arrival Card, and doing four of them on one phone at the gate is not something I would recommend.
Flying into or out Gimpo? Read my review of Lotte City Hotel Gimpo Airport.
Are you Flying to Incheon Airport and visiting Seoul city? Check my review of A’Rex.
