According to relevant authorities, of the total foreign visitors, approximately 15.82 million came for tourism, accounting for 83.5% of all arrivals. Since 2012, the number of foreign tourists has consistently exceeded 10 million annually, peaking at 14.43 million in 2019. After a sharp decline to around 800,000 in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the numbers rebounded to pre-pandemic levels last year.
Foreign tourists' spending in South Korea is also on the rise. Based on credit card data, foreign tourist spending increased from 7.9 trillion won in 2019 to 17.4 trillion won in 2025, a 2.2-fold increase. In comparison, domestic tourism spending grew from 160.5 trillion won to 180.3 trillion won, a 12% increase during the same period, indicating a much faster recovery for foreign spending.
The spending by foreign tourists is concentrated in shopping and accommodation sectors. Last year, foreign tourist spending reached approximately 14.9 trillion won in real terms, with shopping accounting for 37.4%, accommodation for 21.2%, wellness and medical services for 15.2%, and food and beverage for 13.8%.
Compared to 2019, the share of spending in the food and beverage sector increased by 4.4 percentage points, and transportation by 2.1 percentage points. Notably, shopping at duty-free stores and large shopping malls, as well as accommodation in hotels and leisure services like casinos, dominated the spending landscape, highlighting a trend toward larger retail channels.
The increase in foreign spending is also affecting the domestic job market. The Korea Labor Institute's report on the impact of rising foreign tourists on service sector employment indicates that the influx of foreign visitors is contributing to an increase in wage-earning jobs in the service sector. While the employment response was not immediately evident in the first three months following the increase in foreign visitors, a gradual rise in employment began to show around four months later.
Specifically, a 10% increase in foreign tourists in a given month is estimated to result in an additional 6,000 wage-earning jobs six months later, compared to industries with no exposure to tourism. This includes an estimated 3,500 jobs in retail, 2,100 in accommodation and food services, 330 in transportation and warehousing, and 80 in arts, sports, and leisure.
Moreover, as foreign spending is concentrated in large businesses such as duty-free shops, large malls, and casinos, there has been a notable increase in stable regular employment. Regular employment began to rise significantly about five months after the increase in foreign tourists, peaking around nine months later. In contrast, temporary and part-time employment did not show statistically significant changes.
The Labor Institute noted, "In the first quarter of this year, foreign tourist arrivals reached 3.91 million, with tourism expenditures totaling 4.2 trillion won, marking increases of 27.3% and 23.9%, respectively, compared to the same period last year. Considering the positive impact on regular employment in the service sector, we expect continued growth in stable regular jobs beyond just the overall expansion of service sector employment."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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