[법무사김태준] Introduction of Fireign Direct Investment(FDI)

FDI (Foreign Direct Investment)

Definition of
Foreign Direct Investment

FDI refers to an investment made in order to forge lasting economic relations with a corporation of the Republic of Korea or a company run by a national of the Republic of Korea

Under the Foreign Investment Promotion Act, FDI should meet the following conditions

• The amount of investment should be 100 million won or more.

• A foreigner should own 10 percent or more of either the total number of voting stocks issued by a Korean corporation or a company run by a national of the Republic of Korea, or its total equity investment

Forms of
Foreign Direct Investment


• Acquisition of the stocks or shares of a Korean company

• A foreign parent company’s provision of long-term loans with a maturity of five years or longer to a foreign-invested company

• A foreign national’s contribution to a non-profit organization.

It is regulated by the Foreign Investment Promotion Act and other related laws.

How Foreigners
Advance Into Korea

There are three ways by which foreigners(foreign corporations) can enter Korea for business purposes

• Establishing a local corporation
• A local branch
• A liaison office

Foreign Investment Procedures

Foreign investment procedures consist of the following:

• foreign investment notification
• remittance of investment funds
• registration of incorporation & business
• registration of foreign-invested company.

The procedures applied to foreigners are basically the same as the ones applied to Koreans with the exception of two additional steps

• Foreign investment notification
• Registration of foreign-invested company.


We work this with this partner.

외국인투자-우리은행

Where a foreign investor registers a privately-owned business, ‘registration of incorporation’ is not required.

Our Service

We cover services related to notification and registration of investment consultation, and post-management processes.

Investment consultation & execution

• Notification of foreign investment
• Support for corporate registration

Follow-up Management of Foreign Investment

When changes occur in the shareholdings or the company name after registration of a foreign-invested company, the changes should be registered.

• Alteration Registration of a Foreign-Invested Company
• Notification of Transfer of Stocks and Capital Reduction
• Notification of Disposal of Capital Goods
• A Foreign-Invested Company’s Additional Business Operation or Acquisition of Another Domestic Company’s Stocks
• Cancellation of Foreign-Invested Company Registration

Contact us

Legal Inquiries
Tel. +82 2-402-7020
Fax. +82 2-2283-1120
Email. kimbbeopc@naver.com