Is this worth the chance?

[EllisAndRenz 196]

My wife and I are taking a (VERY) log overdue honeymoon starting 10/31.  Our plans were to go to Thailand and then spend three days in South Korea on the way home.   I have a USA passport and my wife has a Philippine passport and USA green card. 

Unfortunately for me, my wife told me that she didn't need a Visa to Korea.  (She claims she did, but whatever).  So I decided to check and yes, she does.  

 

Here is the issue:  The Korean embassy is in Atlanta.  Assuming I mail all the documents to them, it takes 14 days to process and then they mail back.  (USPS mail). 

I asked them if I fly to Atlanta does it help?  They said they still need 14 days and will mail it back.  

 

I'm not even sure I'd have her passport back by the time we leave, and if not, the whole trip is dead.   

 

I emailed the Korean embassy in Bangkok, but they told me that I would have to live in Thailand for 2 years before they could help us.  

 

Would you all take the chance?  If I don't get the Korean embassy, we have an issue coming home.  BUT: we at least get the Thailand portion of the trip.  

If I mail it, I *might* get it back on time?  (It's already the 11th!)

 

Wife REALLY wants to go and she's accusing me of sabotaging the Korean portion of the trip.  

Am I overthinking this?  I tend not to trust the USPS or government agencies in general with time-sensitive items.

 

(We only booked this trip two weeks ago ...)

 

Thanks in advance.  

 

[Boiler 45,449]

Her Passport

 

Her Visa

 

What does she want to do?

[EllisAndRenz 196]

1 hour ago, Boiler said:

Her Passport

 

Her Visa

 

What does she want to do?

 

She's asking me for a recommendation.  

 

I'm asking here in the hopes that someone else has had to deal with a travel Visa to ROK.  Given the information I've posted, would you feel comfortable sending your passport off to an embassy on Oct 11th or 12th when you absolutely need it before the last day of the month? 

 

I'm just trying to get some eyes on this that aren't as invested.  

 

Thank you in advance.

[Vickys_Mom 225]

I've never had to deal with the South Korean consulates.

 

You might call the one in Atlanta and ask about walk-in service...could you drop the application paperwork off and pick it up later the same day or the next day?  Explain the time constraint and apologize for the short notice.

 

There appears to be a mechanism to "pre-book an appointment online" to drop off the paperwork.

 

https://overseas.mofa.go.kr/us-en/brd/m_4502/view.do?seq=706999&page=1

 

You want to call and ask in advance...don't just drop by with no warning. 

 

The worst they can say is "no" and then you're back to your original question.  If they say "yes" then you just have to decide if you want to make a trip to Atlanta to deal with it in person.

 

My comparison was that my wife's Indonesian passport expired while she was in the U.S. on her student visa.  The Indonesian consulate in San Francisco issued her a renewal.  She had made an appointment in advance and was able to walk in and get the new passport in about an hour.

 

Regards,

Vicky's Mom

[EllisAndRenz 196]

Thank you for this.  I actually did call them.  They were not inspiring.  

 

Short version:

- Yes, I can make an appt and go there, but they *still* need 14 business days + time to mail everything back to me.  She said "We don't take personal schedules into account and we have no express service."

 

So about the only thing going there would do is save me the time to mail it to them (assuming I could get an immediate appointment)

 

That would have been ideal if we could have gone there.

 

[Pinkrlion 2,715]

Sorry but they will still need their processing time. Also it will be better to do the walk in so there are no errors in your paperwork which will add additional time to process. 

[Me and her 279]

38 minutes ago, Pinkrlion said:

Sorry but they will still need their processing time. Also it will be better to do the walk in so there are no errors in your paperwork which will add additional time to process. 

Agreed with walk-in.  

[Thunderbolt 172]

Why don't you call the Washington DC embassy? If you are willing to fly out to ATL why not to DC? 

Also, as a US passport holder you need Korean STA to enter ROK. You can do it online for about $10 and it takes up to 24 hours to be issued. 

Good luck.

Edited October 11, 2023 by Thunderbolt

[Ontarkie 14,218]

I'd scrap the Korea part of the trip.  She said she didn't need a visa and she was wrong.  It is to much of a risk and you might lose the whole trip. 

[EllisAndRenz 196]

I did call DC.  They won't help me as Florida (my home state) is serviced out of Atlanta.  

 

[EllisAndRenz 196]

7 minutes ago, Ontarkie said:

I'd scrap the Korea part of the trip.  She said she didn't need a visa and she was wrong.  It is to much of a risk and you might lose the whole trip. 

 

My worry as well.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

ROK has to be one of the most inflexible embassy's I've encountered.  (But maybe everyone changed after COVID?)

 

I have one more email out to some tour group at the airport that (according to their web-page) claims a Philippine citizen with an outbound Visa to the USA (she has a green card) can "tour" with their group for 3 days Visa free.  It's still the middle of the night there now but hopefully they get back to me.  

If so, it salvages that part of the trip.  If not, I have to do some costly flight changes.  

 

I'll never let her guilt-trip me into booking without doing my homework again. 

Thanks for all the help and advise.

 

 

[EllisAndRenz 196]

10 minutes ago, Ontarkie said:

I'd scrap the Korea part of the trip.  She said she didn't need a visa and she was wrong.  It is to much of a risk and you might lose the whole trip. 

Oh, just to add some clarification:

- She was right you don't need a visa to transit THROUGH Korea.  
- Then she found your a get the ETA in like a few days.  She confused that with a Visa.  

 

I for one will be thrilled whenever she gets her citizenship and I can get her on a US Passport.

[.yana 597]

Personally - I wouldn't press my luck.

 

Push the trip out few weeks?

Weather is crappy there anyway.

 

[top_secret 2,411]

US green card holders who are flying an itinerary to or from the US are exempt from South Korean visa requirements for up to 30 days.

 

https://overseas.mofa.go.kr/us-losangeles-en/wpge/m_4397/contents.do

 

Quote

• For Non-U.S. citizen : Tourists in transit (Click)
  •  
  • For Non-U.S. citizen(e.g. China, Mongol, Vietnam, Philippine, India, Cambodia, Laos, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Armenia, etc), Tourists in transit to another countries via Korea, can visit Korea without a visa for up to 30 days.This rule does not apply for the nationals of 24 countries(e.g. Syria, Sudan, Iran, Cuba, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Ghana, etc) and who have violated Korean immigration law.
  • Eligible Applicants : A person who hold a visa or Permanent residency of U.S. and have a flight ticket that is scheduled to depart from Korea within 30 days.
    • who go to U.S. in transit via Korea; or
    • who stay in U.S. and take a flight from U.S. to Korea to go to a country of nationality or a third country.

 

Edited October 11, 2023 by top_secret

[EllisAndRenz 196]

1 minute ago, top_secret said:

I'm almost certain that US green card holders who are flying an itinerary to or from the US are exempt from South Korean visa requirements for up to 30 days.

 

Subsequent to our above conversation, I did find that on the Korean consulate page.  It's a 30-day Visa Exemption, for US, Canada, Australia and NZ.  It seems to say (paraphrased) if the passenger is destined for the USA while transiting thru Korea and holds a valid Visa or Residency to enter (the USA) they are waved from the Visa requirement.

 

Now I'm trying to get an embassy to confirm this.  I can't get anyone to answer the phone.  There is also a blurb that the Visa must be affixed to her passport, but she's a green card holder (with an extension letter).  So I have NO idea what to expect.  

 

Hopefully I'll get ahold of someone soon.  I am surprised the Embassy didn't mention this when I was corresponding with them.

 

Thank you.  This trip *might* be salvageable.