South Korea scraps cash limit for its nationals visiting the North
Seoul scraps US$1,000 limit on the amount of cash South Korean nationals can legally carry when they visit the North
The South Korean government has lifted the limit on the amount of cash its citizens can carry into North Korea, the finance ministry said on Thursday, as part of foreign exchange regulatory reforms.
The current cash limit of US$1,000 (1,023,540 South Korean won) for South Koreans visiting the North will be discontinued due to its “low effectiveness,” as will a ban on credit card and debit card use in the isolated country, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said in a statement.
A finance ministry official said the decision was not a “gesture of peace” towards the North.
“You usually need more than US$1,000 to pay for a stay in North Korea and this has led to visitors unwillingly breaking the law [and taking more than allowed],” said Lim Gang-taek, a senior researcher at the Korean Institute for National Unification.
Lim said the decision was most likely aimed at easing “unrealistic” regulations rather than fostering better relations with Pyongyang.
North and South Korea are still technically at war after the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. South Koreans cannot travel to North Korea, except in rare cases where approval is granted as an exception, including family reunions where hundreds are reunited at a time.