Korea tourism drive gets boost
VISA made easy (from left) Eunhey Kim, country manager-South Korea, VFS Global; Atul Lall, regional head-North Asia, VFS Global; Dilliprashad Joshi, deputy CFO, VFS Global; Lee Jinseok, chairman, KATA; Kishen Singh, COO-China, VFS Global; Tsou Hsin Chiang, chairman of the International Cooperation Committee, KATA; Wang The Shin, director, KATA (CEO, Hoin Tour) and Jin Cheng Xiu, director, KATA (CEO, KCCT).
Photograph courtesy of VFS Global
VFS Global and the Korea Association of Travel Agents (KATA) have agreed to collaborate to promote inbound tourism to South Korea, as the country steps up efforts to attract more international visitors.
The partnership was discussed during a meeting at KATA’s office in Seoul on 9 January 2026, where both sides explored cooperation on visa facilitation and tourism promotion. Officials said the collaboration aims to support seamless international travel to South Korea by leveraging the organizations’ respective networks.
KATA chairman Lee Jin-seok said the agreement would help strengthen Korea’s position as a global travel destination.
“We welcome this collaboration with VFS Global as an important step towards strengthening inbound tourism to the Republic of Korea. By working together and leveraging our respective networks, we aim to enhance accessibility, support travel partners globally, and further position Korea as a preferred destination for international travellers,” Lee said.
VFS Global founder and chief executive officer Zubin Karkaria said the partnership reflects a shared commitment to boosting tourism to South Korea.
"This collaboration with KATA reflects our shared commitment to strengthening inbound tourism to the Republic of Korea, an attractive destination for travellers worldwide. Through closer cooperation, we aim to leverage our extensive global network of Visa Application Centres to support and promote inbound tourism to South Korea,” Karkaria said.
VFS Global has served as a visa processing partner of the South Korean government since 2007 and currently provides visa services across four countries through seven visa application centers. The company said it has processed more than 250,000 Korean visas to date.
Beyond visa processing, VFS Global has expanded its tourism services operations, with its Tourism Services Unit supporting more than 25 destinations globally over the past 16 years.
The collaboration comes as South Korea targets 30 million foreign tourists by 2030. Data from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism showed the country welcomed a record 18.7 million visitors by the end of 2025, surpassing the pre-pandemic peak of 17.5 million recorded in 2019.