Seoul: South Korea has extended to the end of the year its visa fee waiver program for group tourists from six countries, the justice ministry said Wednesday.

According to Yonhap News Agency, under the extended program, visa issuance fees will be waived for group tourists coming from China, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines. The program was introduced following a national tourism strategy meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae in February to promote and revitalize foreign group tourism.

The justice ministry anticipates that the extension will have positive effects on vitalizing the tourism industry and recovering local economies. Around 790,000 foreigners entered the country on group visas in 2025, marking a 39 percent increase from a year earlier, according to the ministry. Of those, only 0.07 percent overstayed their visas or continued to stay illegally, marking a drop of more than 50 percent from the previous year.