South Korea or Laos
Two countries side by side across the same rows as the full comparison. A dash means the value is missing: fields are not filled with guesses. about the data
| South Korea | Laos | |
|---|---|---|
| Salary in IT | $ 61 452 | — |
| Citizenship | 5 years | 10 years |
| Partner can work | no | — |
| Parents | difficult | — |
| Pets | difficult | difficult |
| Pet limit | 5 | no limit |
| Quarantine | 10 days | — |
| Residence permit fee | — | — |
| Rent, 2 bedrooms | $ 999 · estimate | $ 795 · estimate |
| Basket | $ 40,9 | $ 28,9 |
| Life expectancy | 83.63 | 69.22 |
| Homicides/100k | 0.49 | — |
| Natural hazards, 0–10 | 6 | 3.6 |
How the two sets of routes differ
Long-stay routes in this reference: South Korea — 91, Laos — 17. Types present in both: work, study, family and investment. South Korea adds: startup, talent, repatriation, job seeking and working holiday.
Fees, thresholds and deadlines
South Korea: fees range from 60 to 90 USD. Routes stating an income threshold: 1; the lowest is 1,500,000,000 KRW a month. Laos: fees range from 20,000 to 1,200,000 LAK. Routes with a published decision deadline: 4; the shortest is 1 days.
Beyond the first permit
Permanent status: South Korea after 5 years; the other country publishes no term. Citizenship: South Korea after 5 years, Laos after 10 years. Neither recognises a second citizenship.
South Korea in brief
South Korea combines a developed technology economy and low violent crime with a formal points system for long-term residence (E-7 → F-2-7 → F-5) and substantial restrictions on dual citizenship and on a spouse working. Parents, your own or a partner's, can only get the temporary renewable F-1-15 visa with no right to work. Natural hazards are moderate — seasonal typhoons and monsoon floods, earthquakes rare; the notable problem is air quality, the worst among OECD countries.
Laos in brief
Laos is a landlocked South-East Asian country with a GNI per capita of USD 2,150 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025), which places it in the lower part of the lower-middle-income group. A visa granting the right to work (LA-B2) and a work permit are two different documents issued by two different agencies: the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the immigration service on one side, and the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare on the other. The legislation does not provide for an ordinary permanent-residence status for foreign workers or investors: long-term stay rests on renewable visas rather than resident status; the path to citizenship through naturalisation requires at least 10 years of continuous residence (Citizenship Law, 2017 revision), and dual citizenship is not permitted. In a number of provinces, including Savannakhet and Khammouane, affected by bombing along the Ho Chi Minh Trail in 1964–1973, unexploded ordnance remains a practical risk outside populated and cleared areas — Laos has officially adopted a separate 18th national Sustainable Development Goal, "Live Safe from UXO" (announced in September 2015).
Other comparisons
South Korea or… Taiwan · Japan · Thailand · Kazakhstan · Lebanon · Uzbekistan · Malaysia · Azerbaijan
Laos or… Philippines · Bangladesh · Kuwait · Iraq · Mongolia · Oman · People's Republic of China · Sri Lanka
More on each: South Korea · Laos. Build your own comparison — up to four countries
This material is for reference and is not legal, tax or immigration advice. Visa rules, tax thresholds and prices change. Before deciding anything, check the official sources and consult a licensed professional in the relevant country.