Indonesia's Visa-Free Group Tours End This Year — What to Know Now

A family in Jakarta weighing a Seoul trip made up their minds the moment they heard "visa-free." The temporary visa waiver Korea opened for Indonesian group tourists closes on December 31 this year.

At a glance: The Indonesian group-tour visa waiver runs from May 28 to December 31, 2026 · 259,000 Indonesians visited Korea between January and July · Incheon–Jakarta is currently served by T'way Air 5 times a week (Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat, Sun).

The waiver is a temporary measure from Korea's Ministry of Justice that lets group tourists traveling through a travel agency, above a set minimum size, enter Korea without applying for a separate visa. Since it took effect, Indonesian arrivals have jumped noticeably — 259,000 people visited Korea in just the first seven months of this year. But the program is set to end on December 31, so any group planning to visit after the new year needs to check the standard visa application process and required documents well ahead of time. It's also easy to overlook that the waiver applies only to Indonesian nationals — a family member or friend of a different nationality traveling in the same group is still bound by the standard visa rules.

Flight options have grown too. T'way Air launched Incheon–Jakarta service on April 29 and now flies the route five times a week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday). Alongside the existing full-service carriers, having a low-cost option widens the range of fares worth comparing.

It's easy to miss that even under the visa waiver, the trip still has to be a group tour booked through a travel agency — independent travelers don't qualify. Anyone planning a solo trip should confirm their own eligibility with a travel agency or the Korean embassy/consulate before booking, since this program simply doesn't apply to them.