Two separate bills hide behind this one search. Korea's H-1 working holiday visa requires private health insurance covering the whole stay, and several Korean missions set the floor at ₩40,000,000 of coverage. Then, six months after arrival, National Health Insurance becomes compulsory at ₩158,630 a month for foreign local subscribers in 2026. Both land inside the same year.
Four things to budget for
- A private policy bought before departure, lasting as long as the stay you want granted.
- Coverage of at least ₩40,000,000 where the mission states an amount (Seattle and the Canada embassy do; Sydney lists none).
- Mandatory National Health Insurance (NHIS) from month six, at the flat foreigner floor of ₩158,630/month in 2026.
- A lower premium if an employer enrolls you at the workplace: about ₩101,685/month on a ₩2,500,000 salary.
What the H-1 visa actually requires
The Korean Consulate General in Seattle lists health insurance "valid throughout your stay in Korea" with minimum coverage of ₩40,000,000 among its H-1 documents. The Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Canada states the same ₩40,000,000 floor and adds the detail that costs people months of their stay: the length of the policy sets the length of the visa. A one-year policy yields a one-year visa. The two-year stay needs two years of cover on the certificate you hand in.
That figure has no single national home. The Korea Visa Portal lists 관광취업(H-1) as a visa class without publishing any insurance requirement, so ₩40,000,000 is traceable only to individual mission pages. The Consulate General in Los Angeles says so directly, requiring "adequate health insurance for the duration of his/her stay" with no amount, and noting that requirements may differ by embassy or consulate.
The requirement changes from consulate to consulate
This table answers one question: does the mission handling your application state an insurance amount, and what else changes with it?
| Mission | Insurance rule stated | Age | Max stay | Visa fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seattle (US) | ₩40,000,000 minimum | 18–30 | 18 months | USD 45 |
| Embassy, Canada | ₩40,000,000 minimum | 18–35 | 2 years | CAD 121.50 |
| Sydney (AU) | Not listed | 18–30 | 1 year | AUD 588.00 |
| Los Angeles (US) | "Adequate", no amount | 18–30 | 12 months | Not stated |
The spread is real, not a formatting artefact. The Consulate General in Sydney publishes nine required documents and insurance is not among them, appearing instead under the applicant's own expenses alongside an AUD 5,000 closing-balance requirement and roughly seven working days of processing. Seattle asks for proof of ₩3,000,000 in funds, takes three to four weeks with no expedite, limits applicants to bona fide post-secondary students or graduates within one year, and requires entry within 12 months of issuance. Canada's embassy asks for around CAD 3,400 and processes in 7–10 business days.
Practical reading: buy the ₩40,000,000 policy even if your mission is silent, because a policy short of the full stay can shorten the visa where the mission ties the two together.
Month six is when the recurring bill starts
Since 16 July 2019, foreigners and overseas Koreans staying more than six months have been subject to mandatory NHIS enrollment as self-employed (local) insured, and H-1 sits on the eligible-status list alongside the D, E and F series. Private travel cover does not exempt anyone from this.
Foreign local subscribers are assessed on the same income and property basis as Korean nationals, with one override that catches almost every working holiday participant. Under the NHIS assessment standard, if the calculated premium falls below the previous November's average across all subscribers, the average is charged instead for the following January to December. The legal basis is Ministry of Health and Welfare Notice No. 2019-151 of 11 July 2019, most recently amended by Notice No. 2025-69.
For 2026 that floor is ₩158,630 per month: ₩140,210 in health insurance plus ₩18,420 in long-term care, up 3.80% year on year as of 1 January 2026. Someone earning nothing and someone earning ₩1,800,000 a month pay the same amount under this method.
Worth noting where that sits: the Ministry of Health and Welfare puts the 2026 average monthly premium for local insured at ₩90,242. The foreigner floor is roughly 76% higher than the average Korean local subscriber pays.
There is no working holiday discount. NHIS grants a 50% reduction to D-2 (study) and D-4 (trainee) holders and overseas-Korean students, and 30% to G-1-6, G-1-12 and D-6 holders. H-1 appears on neither list, so working holiday participants pay the full floor.
The number that actually decides your cost: does your employer enroll you?
Which side of the system you land on matters more than which private policy you buy. Workplace-insured members pay a percentage of salary, split evenly with the employer. The Health Insurance Policy Deliberation Committee set the 2026 health insurance rate at 7.19% on 28 August 2025, up from 7.09%, with long-term care at 0.9448% of salary.
Run it on a working holiday wage of ₩2,500,000 gross per month:
- Health insurance: ₩2,500,000 × 7.19% = ₩179,750, your half ₩89,875
- Long-term care: ₩2,500,000 × 0.9448% = ₩23,620, your half ₩11,810
- Your monthly total: ₩101,685
Against the local-subscriber floor of ₩158,630, workplace enrollment saves ₩56,945 a month, or ₩341,670 across the second half of a 12-month stay. The full payslip mechanics are broken down in our guide to what 7.19% means on a Korean payslip.
The crossover is easy to find. Your combined employee share is 4.0674% of gross, so ₩158,630 ÷ 0.040674 gives about ₩3,900,000 gross per month. Earn above that and the salary-based premium exceeds the flat floor; earn below it and workplace enrollment is cheaper. Working holiday pay in Korea rarely reaches ₩3.9 million a month, so for almost everyone on H-1 the cheaper outcome is being on the books.
This breaks in three situations. Short-hour part-time work often does not create workplace-insured status at all, in which case the ₩158,630 floor applies no matter what you earn. Cash work with no registration leaves you in the same place, with no contribution record to show. And households headed by an F-5 or F-6 holder are excluded from this assessment method entirely and assessed on domestic standards instead.
Here is the 12-month shape, using a 1 March arrival:
| Period | Who covers you | Monthly cost (KRW, 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Months 1–6 | Private policy from home country | Not published |
| Months 7–12, employed at ₩2.5m | NHIS workplace insured | 101,685 |
| Months 7–12, no workplace enrollment | NHIS local insured | 158,630 |
The table shows the one line nobody can fill in for you: no Korean government body publishes a price or price range for compliant H-1 private insurance. The requirement is a coverage level, not a premium. Figures circulating on commercial blogs have no primary source behind them, and this article will not print one.
Falling behind on premiums costs you the visa, not just the money
Since 1 August 2019, NHIS arrears feed directly into immigration decisions. The Korea Immigration Service confirms the delinquency check runs at 38 immigration offices nationwide, that non-payment caps a stay extension at six months, and that clearing the arrears in full restores a normal extension. Korean press coverage when the rule took effect described the finer thresholds: three or fewer missed payments limits the extension to six months, and from the fourth missed payment the extension is refused outright, with the person paying 100% of their own medical costs while in arrears.
Premiums are billed monthly and easiest to handle by autopay from a Korean account, which is one more reason to sort out opening a bank account in Korea in the first weeks rather than the sixth month.
One gap is genuinely undocumented: no Korean government body publishes whether an H-1 holder can cancel or claim a refund on the private policy once NHIS enrollment becomes compulsory. Budget as though both run in parallel for at least part of the year.
If you are a Korean citizen going the other way
The same phrase describes the outbound side, where insurance rules belong to the destination country. Korea holds 28 working holiday agreements plus the UK Youth Mobility Scheme, 29 arrangements in total, coordinated by the Working Holiday Info Center under the Overseas Koreans Agency at the Seoul Finance Center in Jung-gu (1899-1995).
Canada is the strictest and the largest. Insurance is mandatory to enter on the permit, and the Working Holiday Info Center's Canada page gives a 2026 quota of 10,239 by random selection, ages 18–35, up to 24 months and two lifetime participations, with fees of CAD 279.75 plus CAD 85 for biometrics. The pool opened on 22 December 2025; an invitation must be accepted within 10 days and the application submitted within 20. Luxembourg requires cover for the whole stay guaranteeing up to EUR 30,000. Ireland requires a policy valid for one year from the date of entry, with no coverage ceiling published.
One trap when reading these pages: the English partner table shows 12,000 for Canada as an inbound-programme figure, while the Korean-language Canada page gives 10,239 for 2026 applicants heading there. The two run in opposite directions and should not be treated as the same quota.
This is general information on published rules and rates, not personalised insurance, tax or immigration advice. Every 2026 NHIS figure resets on 1 January 2027, and the following year's rate is decided the preceding late August.
Questions people ask next
Does National Health Insurance satisfy the H-1 visa insurance requirement?
No. At the application stage you are outside Korea and not enrolled, and NHIS enrollment as a local subscriber only becomes mandatory after more than six months of residence. The visa is issued on the strength of a private policy.
How much does H-1 working holiday insurance cost?
No Korean government source publishes a price. What is published is the coverage level: ₩40,000,000 minimum at the Seattle consulate and the Canada embassy, for the full duration of the stay. Premiums depend on your age, your home market and the insurer.
Do I still need insurance if my consulate does not list it?
Sydney's nine-document list omits it, and Los Angeles asks only for "adequate" cover. Buying the ₩40,000,000 policy anyway is the safer choice, since the Canada embassy ties the policy term to the visa term, and consulate requirements change without notice.
Can I get the 50% NHIS discount that students receive?
No. The reduction applies to D-2 and D-4 holders and overseas-Korean students, with a 30% reduction for G-1-6, G-1-12 and D-6. H-1 is on neither list and pays the full ₩158,630 floor in 2026.
What happens to my visa extension if I miss premium payments?
Immigration checks NHIS arrears at 38 offices nationwide. Missed payments cap an extension at six months, and paying the balance in full restores a normal extension. Clear any arrears before you file, not after.
Is a standard travel insurance policy enough?
Only if it runs for the entire stay and meets the stated coverage amount. Short trip policies that expire at 90 days fail the "valid throughout your stay in Korea" wording that the mission pages use, and a policy that lapses mid-stay is the most common reason an application comes back.