Japan and South Korea are initiating a pilot program in which passengers from each country will be able to use fast-track lanes at immigration when arriving at designated airports in the other country.
The foreign ministries of both countries announced the program, which will be in place for the month of June at two airports in each nation. Participating airports include Seoul’s Gimpo International (GMP) and Busan’s Gimhae International (PUS) in South Korea and Fukuoka (FUK) and Tokyo Haneda (HND) Terminal 3 in Japan.
The South Korean Foreign Ministry said the lanes will be in place at GMP and PUS, where arriving Japanese passengers will go to a designated lane only for Japanese nationals. Similarly, South Korean passengers arriving at FUK and HND’s Terminal 3 will go to lanes aimed at moving South Koreans through quickly.
“The operation of exclusive immigration lanes is expected to serve as an opportunity to further promote people-to-people exchanges between Korea and Japan by enhancing immigration convenience," South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The Japanese Foreign Ministry said 12 million passengers traveled between the two countries in 2024.
The pilot program is part of the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the normalization of ties between the two countries in June 1965. The ministries said the program could be extended beyond June at the participating airports or expanded to other airports, depending on results.
To be eligible, nationals must have traveled to the other country within the last year (from June 1, 2024) and they must pre-register. The program will be for flights arriving at the airports between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. local time.
Passengers arriving on any airline are eligible for the program at PUS and FUK. At GMP and HND, passengers must be arriving on one of four airlines to participate, including All Nippon Airways, Asiana Airlines, Japan Airlines and Korean Air.
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