If you have a lost passport in Korea, act immediately: check your last locations, contact your embassy or consulate, and call Korean Immigration before going to the airport. Do not assume a newly issued passport or emergency travel document automatically solves your departure paperwork.
Lost passport in Korea: take these first steps
Call your hotel front desk first; staff can often contact a taxi company, restaurant, attraction, or nearby police station in Korean. Retrace the places you visited, including subway stations, KTX stations, and airport terminals. Save screenshots of your flight booking, transit receipts, hotel address, and any photo or scan of the missing passport.
1. Report suspected theft and protect your accounts
If theft is possible, call 112 or visit a police station (Gyeongchalseo). Bring any other photo ID and ask for written confirmation of the report, especially if you will make an insurance claim. Lock payment cards if they were in the same bag, change important passwords, and do not share photos of your passport report online.
2. Contact your embassy or consulate the same day
Your embassy, not Korean authorities, issues a replacement passport, emergency passport, or travel document. Check appointment rules, required photos, fees, and payment methods before traveling there. Many consular sections are open only on business days, and an urgent appointment is not guaranteed.
Bring every record you have: a passport copy, driver’s license or national ID, police report, passport photo, hotel address, and flight itinerary. U.S. travelers can review the State Department’s instructions for a lost or stolen passport before contacting the Embassy. Other visitors should use their own government’s embassy directory.
Confirm immigration requirements before changing your flight
A lost passport in Korea can require more than a replacement document. Korean Immigration may need to connect your new document with your entry record before you depart. Call 1345 from within Korea and explain your nationality, date of arrival, visa or entry status, original passport number if known, and planned flight date.
The Immigration Contact Center’s multilingual service lists weekday support from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.; English, Chinese, and Korean are available after 6:00 p.m. Ask whether you must visit an immigration office, obtain a departure confirmation, or allow extra time at the airport. Hours and procedures should be reconfirmed when you call.
3. Budget for a delay, not just the passport fee
Set aside funds for passport photos, local transportation, extra accommodation, and airline change charges. Embassy fees differ by nationality, while a last-minute flight change can cost far more. Keep both a bank card and some Korean won (KRW) available. A short Seoul taxi trip may cost roughly ₩6,000–₩20,000 (about US$4–$14), depending on distance and traffic.
Get ready for departure from Incheon or Gimpo
For a lost passport in Korea, contact the airline only after you understand the immigration process. Airlines can confirm their document rules, but they cannot replace an immigration record. If your flight leaves within 24 to 48 hours, tell both your embassy and Immigration the exact departure time before paying to change the booking.
Arrive earlier than usual with your new travel document, police report, embassy receipt, flight itinerary, and any immigration instructions in one folder. Incheon International Airport (Incheon Gukje Gonghang) advises travelers to obtain the appropriate embassy-issued document before travel; check its passport and travel-document information before leaving for the terminal.
4. Never travel on the original if it reappears
Once a passport has been reported lost, it may be canceled even if a taxi driver or hotel later finds it. Use the replacement document issued by your embassy and follow its instructions. A fast response to a lost passport in Korea usually gives you the best chance of avoiding a costly missed flight. Information checked August 13, 2026.
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