Claim : South Korea bans all Israeli tourists from entering their country
Conclusion : The claim is false. No such ban exists. Korean official sources confirm that Israeli citizens remain eligible for visa-free entry to South Korea and are exempt from the Korea Electronic Travel Authorization (K-ETA) until December 31, 2026.
Rating : Totally False — 
Several social media users have claimed that South Korea has banned all Israeli tourists from entering the country. Verified X user ‘Malcolm_Pal9’ made such a claim featuring a graphic claiming “BREAKING: SOUTH KOREA BANS ALL ISRAELI TOURISTS FROM ENTERING THE COUNTRY.”
The image includes photos of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, styled as a news headline from “Daily Feed.” This post garnered over 263,000 views and can be seen below –
Fair enough. pic.twitter.com/jnB1mfU4Bv
— 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐦 (@Malcolm_Pal9) January 7, 2026
Other users have shared similar claims which can be seen here and here.
FACT CHECK
DigitEYE India decided to investigate this claim and found that it was false. There is no restriction on Israelis entering South Korea. Israeli nationals continue to enjoy visa free entry, as the Korea Electronic Travel Authorization (K-ETA) requirement has been officially waived off until December 31, 2026.
We first conducted a web search with the phrase “South Korea bans all Israelis” to learn more about the claim. The South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs and visa portal show no travel bans or entry restrictions targeting Israeli citizens. Moreover, there are no reports from credible media outlets that support such a claim.
Following this, we learned from a report that Israeli passport holders are explicitly exempt from the Korea Electronic Travel Authorization (K-ETA) requirement until December 31, 2026, thus, allowing visa-free stays up to 90 days for tourism. The latest extension, announced in late 2025, keeps the exemption active until December 31, 2026. View a screenshot of this announcement by Israel’s embassy in Korea below –
Following this we searched for the official notice of exemption of K-ETA by South Korean officials. On 23 December, 2025, an official notice was released on South Korea K-ETA website stating that “the exemption will be effective until December 31, 2026”. This means that during this period from January 1, 2026 to December 31, 2026, those groups of 22 nationalities (including Israelis) are able to enter South Korea without applying for K-ETA.
Finally, we checked the eligibility and applicants page for K ETA applicable countries. The official website lists Israel as exempt, with the allowed period of stay shown below as 90 days. No changes have been made and Israeli tourists remain welcome in South Korea.
Thus, the claim is false.
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