KIIP in Korea: Levels, Hours, Fees, and Who Needs Level 5
KIIP β the Korea Immigration and Integration Program, μ¬νν΅ν©νλ‘κ·Έλ¨ in Korean β is the governmentβs Korean language and society course for foreign residents. Roughly ninety thousand people a year sit in it.
Most explanations of it are a list of levels. That is not the part that matters. The money is small and the time is enormous, and once you see the hours written down, every decision about this programme becomes obvious.
We are not the Ministry of Justice and this is not immigration advice. Figures below are as published and correct to the best of our knowledge in October 2026 β confirm yours on socinet.go.kr before you plan around them.
The levels, the hours, and what each one costs
| Level | Course | Hours | Fee | Test at the end |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Korean basics | 15 | Free | None |
| 1 | Korean & culture, beginner 1 | 100 | β©100,000 | Level test (free, marked by your institution) |
| 2 | Beginner 2 | 100 | β©100,000 | Level test (free) |
| 3 | Intermediate 1 | 100 | β©100,000 | Level test (free) |
| 4 | Intermediate 2 | 100 | β©100,000 | Mid-term evaluation (β©38,000) |
| 5 basic | Understanding Korean Society | 70 | β©70,000 | Comprehensive evaluation (β©38,000) |
| 5 advanced | Understanding Korean Society, advanced | 30 | β©30,000 | Comprehensive evaluation for naturalisation (β©38,000) |
Start at level 1 and go all the way through: β©500,000 in course fees, plus roughly β©110,000β150,000 in evaluation fees. Placed at level 3 instead, and the course fees drop to about β©300,000.
There is a discount worth knowing about: attend everything in one level, or be recommended by your teacher as a diligent student, and the next level is half price.
Now the number that actually matters
A level is 100 hours, and 100 hours is a semester.
The programme runs three semesters a year, and most people take one level per semester, two or three evenings or weekend sessions a week. So:
| Where you start | Time to finish level 5 |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | 18 months to 2 years |
| Level 3 | About a year |
| Level 5 | One semester |
That is the real price list. β©100,000 is a night out; a semester is a season of your life, and if your plans depend on finishing β a visa change, a residency application β every semester lost moves that date too.
This is why the placement test is worth preparing for. Not to save β©100,000. To save three months, and then another three.
How the placement score maps to a level
The pre-evaluation is scored out of 100 across a written and a spoken part, and the score decides where you start:
| Score | Placed at |
|---|---|
| Spoken part under 3 points | Level 0, regardless of the written score |
| 3β20 | Level 1 |
| 21β40 | Level 2 |
| 41β60 | Level 3 |
| 61β80 | Level 4 |
| 81 and above | Level 5 |
Two things fall out of that table.
Every 20 points is a semester. Twenty-one points rather than twenty is not a slightly better result; it is three months of your life and β©100,000.
The spoken part can override everything. Score under three on the interview and the written paper stops mattering β you start at level 0. It is five short questions about your own life, and it is the part people never rehearse. If you prepare one thing, prepare talking.
What the written half looks like, with five practice questions, is in the KIIP level test.
You might not need the test at all
Two routes around it.
Skip it and start at zero. The pre-evaluation is optional for new participants. Not sitting it means starting at level 0 β which is a perfectly reasonable choice if your Korean is genuinely beginner and you would rather not pay β©38,000 to be told so.
Use a TOPIK grade instead. A TOPIK result can place you without the pre-evaluation: grade 1 to level 2, grade 2 to level 3, grade 3 to level 4, and grade 4 or above to level 5. If you already hold one, check this before booking anything β what TOPIK is and how the grades work.
And at the top end: score 85 or above and you may be able to go straight to the comprehensive evaluation without the course at all.
Who actually needs to finish level 5
This is where people over-commit, so it is worth being precise. What the programmeβs own rules say the certificates are used for:
| Goal | How far you need to go |
|---|---|
| Naturalisation (citizenship) | Level 5 basic and advanced β 100 hours of the society course β then the naturalisation comprehensive evaluation |
| Permanent residency (F-5) | Level 5 basic, the 70-hour society course |
| Points-based and other visas | Usually not level 5. Completed levels count as points, and some categories accept level 4 in place of a TOPIK grade |
Why people finish anyway: the points
Some residence categories are scored rather than simply qualified for, and Korean ability is one of the scored items. As the published tables stand in October 2026, that item can be evidenced either by a TOPIK grade or by KIIP levels β they are alternatives, not a stack β and it is worth up to 20 points.
Completing level 5 can then add a further bonus of up to 10 points in a separate line of the same table. So language can account for something like 30 points of a score, which is why plenty of people finish the programme who have no interest in citizenship at all.
The useful way to read that: whichever route you end up on, Korean is the one requirement you can start banking now. A TOPIK grade and a KIIP level are both evidence, both take months, and neither can be bought at the last minute when an application date arrives.
Point values and categories are revised, so treat the numbers above as the shape of the thing rather than todayβs law β Hi Korea and the 1345 centre have the current table.
So the honest version: if permanent residency or citizenship is the goal, level 5 is the destination. If the goal is points, stop at the level that gets you the points you need β plenty of people finish at 2, 3 or 4 and never go back.
We do not give immigration advice, and we are not lawyers or licensed administrative agents. Which level your own visa route requires is a question for the 1345 immigration contact centre, Hi Korea, or a licensed professional β the rules change, and they change by category.
The thing nobody budgets for
Not money. Seats.
Classes open by region, level and quota, and in busy areas the place you want fills before you reach it. Missing a semester because the local institution had no room is more common than failing anything, and it costs exactly what failing a level would.
Two practical consequences: apply early in the enrolment window, and pay the course fee on time β the fee is paid through socinet after you finish a level, and an unpaid fee blocks you from registering for the evaluation.
Get it sorted
If you are deciding whether to sit the pre-evaluation, the arithmetic is simple: β©38,000 and an afternoon of preparation, against three months per twenty points.
We arrange Korean lessons in English, and preparing for this test β the spoken part especially, which decides more than people realise β is one of the things our tutors do. Tell us when you are sitting it and where you are starting from, and we will set the sessions up around the date. Prices are on the Korean lessons page.