What score does the D-9-1 visa require?

Per the operator's page: TOPIK 3 or higher in Korean, plus 60 of a possible 160 points, with at least one prerequisite item worth 10 points or more. These figures are published by the Global Start-up Immigration Center, the OASIS operator — not by the Ministry of Justice.

What are the prerequisite items on the D-9-1?

Two, together worth up to 65 points: trade performance (average annual performance over the past two years, up to 30 points, in USD export/import bands) and trade expertise (up to 35 points — working experience 20, a relevant university major 15, or the OASIS-4+ Basic Trading Course certificate 10).

What fills the elective 95 points?

Period of stay in Korea up to 20 points; education background up to 20 (doctorate 20 down to college 5); and additional items up to 55 — a Korean college education 30, KRW 100 million or more of own capital in the business 15, and TOPIK 3+ or KIIP completion 10. Duplicate calculation between items is allowed.

What business setup does the visa require?

Business registration as a trade business, plus a lease contract for an independent business establishment in the applicant's own name. A co-representative arrangement with a same-qualification foreigner splits the points between the number of foreigners.

How does extension work?

Extensions are permitted only with an actual trade record — the operator states the rule exists to prevent use as a means of staying rather than trading. First extensions: 5-10 points buys 6 months, 11-20 buys 1 year, 21+ buys 2 years, and the prerequisite item must carry at least 5 points.

Where can I verify these figures?

With the issuing authorities — HiKorea (hikorea.go.kr) or the Korea Immigration Service — before filing. The operator's page itself carries no such disclaimer; this one does, because the figures here are the operator's publication, not a ministry notice.

D-9-1, Korea's trade visa: TOPIK 3, 60 of 160 points, and a visa that only extends if you actually trade

Published 1 September 20264 min read6 primary sources

The trade-business visa runs on its own points system — separate from the D-8-4 startup matrix: TOPIK 3 or higher, 60 of 160 points with a 10-point prerequisite item, premises leased in your own name, and extensions granted only against a real trade record. Figures are operator-published.

Container terminal at the Port of Busan, a containership moored alongside the cranes

On this page

The threshold
Where the 160 points live
The business behind the points
The extension regime is the real test
How and where to file

Korea's founder visa routes: the OASIS-4 on-ramp into D-10-2 and D-8-4, the separate D-9-1 trade and F-1-D nomad tracks, and the permanence routes whose criteria no agency page publishes

Korea has two founder visas and two scoring systems. The technology startup route scores on the OASIS matrix.

The trade route is D-9-1, the 무역경영 비자. It runs on a different card: 160 points, a language floor, and an extension regime that pays for performance.

One sourcing note before the numbers. This page's figures come from the Global Start-up Immigration Center, the body that operates OASIS. They are not from a Ministry of Justice notice.

The operator's page carries no verify-with-authority disclaimer of its own; this post does. Confirm every figure against HiKorea before you file.

The threshold

The operator states it in one line. TOPIK 3+ and 60 points out of 160, with a required item worth 10 or more.

The language requirement is not optional seasoning. TOPIK 3 sits in front of the points total. It also appears again inside the points system, as a 10-point elective item.

Foreigners who meet the points requirement, with no disqualifying grounds, can take the visa or change status after examination. The operator notes the change-of-status path is open to long-term residents who meet the requirements. D-2 students, for example.

Where the 160 points live

Item group	Maximum	What is inside
Prerequisite: trade performance	30	Average annual export/import performance over the past two years, in USD bands
Prerequisite: trade expertise	35	Working experience 20 · relevant university major 15 · OASIS-4+ Basic Trading Course 10
Elective: period of stay	20	Registered stay 1-5+ years; highest score counts
Elective: education	20	Doctorate 20 · master's 15 · bachelor's 10 · college 5
Elective: additional	55	Korean college education 30 · KRW 100M+ own capital 15 · TOPIK 3+ or KIIP 10

The prerequisite structure is the design feature. Electives alone will not reach 60. At least one required item must carry 10 points or more.

The operator publishes one worked combination worth exactly 60. The OASIS-4+ Basic Trading Course runs 3 days for 10 points. Add a Korean college degree (5), a Korean college education background (30), and three-plus years of stay (15).

The business behind the points

Points alone do not qualify a trade business. The applicant holds an individual business registration, filed as a trade business. They also hold a lease on an independent business establishment in their own name.

One anti-gaming rule deserves a plain-language note: co-representatives with the same qualification do not each bank the full points. The operator's rule divides the sum by the number of foreigners involved.

The extension regime is the real test

The operator is explicit about why. Extensions exist to stop the visa becoming a way to stay in Korea rather than to trade.

So the extension scores your performance. First extensions run on a sliding scale.

5-10 points buys six months, 11-20 buys one year, 21 or more buys two. The prerequisite item must carry at least 5 points, or there is no extension at all.

The elective block widens at extension. Korean employees (full-time, six months or more) and annual personal income tax payments both convert to points. So does an advanced trade training course approved by the Ministry of Justice.

How and where to file

You file with immigration, not with the operator. HiKorea is the Ministry of Justice's own system, and it splits two ways.

Some applications go online through 전자민원. Its own 민원선택 list includes 등록외국인의 체류자격 변경허가 and 등록외국인의 체류기간연장허가 — change of status and extension of stay, for foreigners already registered in Korea.

Everything else needs an office. Book a slot through 방문예약, and take the right form from 민원서식.

One boundary worth knowing: issuing a visa for the first time is not a HiKorea e-application. HiKorea's own 사증신청 결과조회 link points at visa.go.kr instead.

Frequently asked questions

What score does the D-9-1 visa require?: Per the operator's page: TOPIK 3 or higher in Korean, plus 60 of a possible 160 points, with at least one prerequisite item worth 10 points or more. These figures are published by the Global Start-up Immigration Center, the OASIS operator — not by the Ministry of Justice.
What are the prerequisite items on the D-9-1?: Two, together worth up to 65 points: trade performance (average annual performance over the past two years, up to 30 points, in USD export/import bands) and trade expertise (up to 35 points — working experience 20, a relevant university major 15, or the OASIS-4+ Basic Trading Course certificate 10).
What fills the elective 95 points?: Period of stay in Korea up to 20 points; education background up to 20 (doctorate 20 down to college 5); and additional items up to 55 — a Korean college education 30, KRW 100 million or more of own capital in the business 15, and TOPIK 3+ or KIIP completion 10. Duplicate calculation between items is allowed.
What business setup does the visa require?: Business registration as a trade business, plus a lease contract for an independent business establishment in the applicant's own name. A co-representative arrangement with a same-qualification foreigner splits the points between the number of foreigners.
How does extension work?: Extensions are permitted only with an actual trade record — the operator states the rule exists to prevent use as a means of staying rather than trading. First extensions: 5-10 points buys 6 months, 11-20 buys 1 year, 21+ buys 2 years, and the prerequisite item must carry at least 5 points.
Where can I verify these figures?: With the issuing authorities — HiKorea (hikorea.go.kr) or the Korea Immigration Service — before filing. The operator's page itself carries no such disclaimer; this one does, because the figures here are the operator's publication, not a ministry notice.

Sources

Global Start-up Immigration Center (OASIS operator), D-9-1 page — points system, requirements, extension rules — read 2026-09-01
Global Start-up Immigration Center (OASIS operator), home page — operator identity and OASIS system description — read 2026-09-01
Hero photograph: Busan Container Terminal by Niels Johannes, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 — read 2026-09-01
HiKorea 전자민원 신청 — the 민원선택 list, including 체류자격 변경허가 and 체류기간연장허가 for registered foreigners — read 2026-09-02
HiKorea 방문예약 — booking an immigration office visit — read 2026-09-02
HiKorea 민원서식 — the application forms — read 2026-09-02

Everything above is the rule as published. See how it applies to your case.