Travel app lets international tourists to Seoul use phones for ID, payments

Social Affairs

Published: 10 Dec. 2023, 17:28 Updated: 11 Dec. 2023, 13:46

Travel app lets international tourists to Seoul use phones for ID, payments

Foreigners in hanbok, or Korean traditional clothing, take a photo at Gyeongbok Palace in Jongno DIstrict, central Seoul, on Friday. [YONHAP]

International tourists in Korea now need only their phones for personal identification and payments.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on Sunday the expansion of services for its TripPASS application, enabling foreign tourists to use their mobile passports for identification and receive immediate tax refunds through the app.

According to the city government, the application is expected to reduce the hassle of carrying physical passports and credit cards.

A screen of TripPASS, shared by the Seoul city government on Sunday, displays the mobile passport of a foreign tourist. [SEOUL METROPOLITAN GOVERNMENT]

After topping up their debit cards in the application, tourists can pay for goods and transportation, including subways, buses and taxis.

Payments and tax refunds through the application are currently available at CU convenience stores and designated stores. The service is set to expand to GS25 and duty-free shops of Hyundai Department Store and Shinsegae in the first half of next year.

The TripPASS application currently supports five languages: Korean, English, Japanese, simplified and traditional Chinese. The service will be additionally offered in Vietnamese and Thai by the first half of 2024.

Chinese tourists will be able to use the application's functions through WeChat without the need to download a separate app and can pay with WeChat Pay.

The TripPASS application is also expected to benefit small merchants in the capital as they only have to scan QR codes to use the service without buying passport readers or payment terminals for overseas credit cards, according to the city government.

The updated application is available for Android users and will be offered to iPhone users by late January.

A person uses a real-time interactive translation service screen at Myeong-dong Station on subway line No. 4 in central Seoul. [SEOUL METRO]

The service is part of the capital’s goal to draw 30 million overseas visitors by 2026.

Earlier in the month, the city government introduced TABA, a taxi-hailing service for foreign tourists.

It also implemented a real-time, interactive translation service from Korean into 12 languages and vice versa at Myeong-dong Station in central Seoul. The real-time translation service will be expanded to five more subway stations in the city, including Seoul Station and Itaewon Station, in April.

“The city government will ensure overseas visitors experience a safe and convenient Seoul by supporting startups with innovative ideas,” said Kim Young-hwan, director-general of the city government's Tourism and Sports Bureau.

Lordsystem, the application's developer, received two innovation awards at the CES 2024 for its latest expansion of the service. The city government has supported the startup since 2019 after the company introduced its mobile passport service through a competition.

“We will strive to attract 30 million tourists more quickly and create a convenient city for visitors traveling alone.”

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]