The threshold for overseas money transfers without supporting documentation will be significantly lowered starting next year.
The Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Bank of Korea announced on Monday that individuals and businesses will be able to remit up to $100,000 per year without documentation, regardless of which financial institution they use.
Currently, residents can send up to $100,000 per year without documents if using banks, while non-bank providers such as small remittance operators and securities firms are limited to $50,000 per company.
Remittances above $5,000 must also go through designated banks, keeping the system largely bank-centric.
The change comes with the launch of the Overseas Remittance Integrated Management System (ORIS) in January 2026, which will allow the government to track and manage all remittance transactions in real time.
With ORIS, banks and non-bank institutions can operate under the same limits without management issues, eliminating the need for designated banks for certain transactions.
However, the per-transaction limit remains $5,000, and documentation is still required if the annual $100,000 limit is exceeded. Repeatedly splitting remittances below $5,000 after reaching the annual limit could be reported to the National Tax Service and Korea Customs Service.
The reform, in the meantime, expected to heighten competition in the remittance market.
Non-bank providers will now be able to offer the same no-document limits as banks, potentially accelerating competition based on lower fees and faster processing.
The ministry emphasized that the move is aimed at improving convenience for residents, not influencing the foreign exchange market, as no-document overseas remittances by Koreans total around $10 billion annually and have limited impact on exchange rates.
By Na Hyun-jun and Chang Iou-chung
[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business News Korea & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]
