Seoul’s subway ticket kiosks to accept overseas cards from March 17

SEOUL – Seoul’s subway system will begin accepting overseas-issued payment cards for transportation card purchases and recharging from March 17, a move aimed at easing a longstanding inconvenience for foreign visitors using the city’s public transit.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said 440 new transportation card kiosks will be installed across 273 stations on Seoul Subway Lines No. 1 to 8, allowing payments to be made with overseas credit and debit cards as well as via mobile payment platforms such as Kakao Pay and Naver Pay.

The service will be available from the start of subway operations on March 17, the city said.

The machines will initially support expanded payment options for the Seoul Climate Card, which offers unlimited use of buses and subways within Seoul, and short-term passes ranging from one day to seven days.

Depending on demand, the city plans to expand the offering to include a 30-day pass.

A 3.7 per cent service fee will apply to transactions made with overseas-issued cards, according to the city government.

The city will operate promotional booths at Seoul Station, Hongdae Station and Myeong-dong Station, all of which are major tourist hubs in the capital. The booths will provide information about the Climate Card and distribute multilingual brochures on March 17, 20 and 21, when international visitor numbers are expected to rise ahead of a comeback performance by K-pop boy band BTS scheduled for March 21 at Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul.

“The Climate Card has recorded more than 18 million cumulative recharges and has become one of Seoul’s most widely recognised public transit policies,” a city official said. “We will continue improving services to make public transportation more convenient for international visitors.” THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK