New visa gives wings to K-pop dreams in South Korea

South Korea will soon test a new visa specifically for foreigners who dream of becoming K-pop stars.

Fans line up to buy the new album of South Korean K-pop boy band Seventeen on April 29. (Source: AFP)

In an effort to restore the tourism industry to pre-Covid-19 times, the South Korean Ministry of Finance has announced that the K-Culture Training Visa will soon be available to foreigners who want to sing, dance, and act like K-pop idols.

Candidates don't necessarily need to audition or have an offer from a talent agency — at least not yet, with more details expected to be announced later this year.

The introduction of the Korean K-pop visa is intended to encourage young tourists to travel to Korea on their own rather than on tour. With this visa, young tourists can experience K-pop culture more than just shopping on pure tours.

The growing interest in K-pop has prompted many foreign fans to travel and learn the Korean language, as well as visit filming locations of K-pop music videos and popular Korean dramas.

According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of South Korea, K-pop is now the most cited reason for visiting the Northeast Asian country, especially among fans from Southeast Asia, Europe and the United States. In 2023, tourists from Thailand and the Philippines will account for a fifth of all tourists to South Korea, despite cumbersome visa procedures.

The South Korean government now aims to leverage the popularity of its culture to attract more tourists globally, possibly by lowering barriers for visitors from Southeast Asia.

But while the nationalities of those entering the country are becoming more diverse, the tourism industry has been slow to recover to pre-pandemic levels, according to the Ministry of Finance.

About 11 million people visited the country last year, up slightly from the previous year but far below the more than 17.5 million in 2019, South Korean government data showed.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/thi-thuc-moi-chap-canh-giac-mo-k-pop-o-han-quoc-276877.html