Free international calls of up to 90 minutes to 20 countries, supported in 6 languages
Providing customized benefits for foreigners, including one-time exemption from overseas remittance fees

SK Telecom will simultaneously launch a dedicated rate plan and app for its 1.5 million foreign customers in Korea on the 25th.

According to the Ministry of Justice’s August 2017 statistics, the number of foreigners staying in Korea for more than 90 days is approximately 1.54 million, and the number is rapidly increasing every year. The nationalities are Chinese (48.1%), Vietnamese (7.9%), and American (7.1%). Many of these foreigners are experiencing inconveniences when using telecommunications services due to the lack of rate plans that fit their lifestyles and the lack of foreign language guidance.

■ 'T Global' rate plan that provides data, international calls, and overseas remittance benefits

SK Telecom is introducing the 'T Global' rate plan, which offers customized benefits to foreigners after months of preliminary research. 'T Global' offers benefits related to data, international calls, and overseas remittances by adding 3,300 won per month to the band data rate plan. Any foreigner who meets the conditions for signing up for a postpaid rate plan, such as staying for more than 90 days and possessing an alien registration card, can use it.

T Global provides an additional 300MB to 1.5GB of data per section compared to the band data plan. However, additional calls of 50 to 300 minutes are excluded. This reflects the fact that foreigners use about 10% more data than Koreans on average and rarely use additional calls such as 050 and 070. According to a survey by SK Telecom, foreigners are spending a lot of time watching content while not installing wired internet due to their frequent movement.

T Global subscribers can use international calls for free for 10 to 90 minutes (varies by country) per month to 20 countries around the world, including China, Vietnam, and the Philippines. The amount of free calls is worth 6,000 won based on the international call service rate mainly used by foreigners. International calls are a service that is practically necessary for foreigners, as there are many obstacles to using mobile Internet phone (m-VoIP) depending on the telecommunications infrastructure environment and smartphone penetration rate in their home countries.

Customers who subscribe to 'T Global' will receive a one-time exemption from overseas remittance fees when using KEB Hana Bank's '1Q Transfer' app. Foreigners are sending more than half of their monthly income overseas, but they feel burdened by the remittance fees, which can be as high as USD 80 per transaction.

SK Telecom is expanding its service scope to foreigners with E-9 (non-professional employment) and D-2 (international students) visas who were previously unable to purchase devices through installment payments. Customers with a remaining period of stay of 9 months or more can purchase devices through installment payments of up to 12 months within the limit of 500,000 won.

■ T World Global App available in 6 languages including English, Chinese, and Vietnamese

SK Telecom is launching the T World Global app for mobile devices, the first of its kind in Korea, supporting six languages: Korean, English, Chinese, Vietnamese, Indonesian, and Cambodian.

Foreign users can easily sign up by simply entering their mobile phone number and passport number, and can easily check real-time rates, remaining call volume, and international call usage. Data generated when using the 'T World Global' app is free, and supports both Android OS and iOS.

SK Telecom plans to provide T Global rate plans and the T World Global app to foreign customers at its official authorized dealers nationwide.

Song Kwang-soo, head of SK Telecom’s product marketing division, said, “It is true that, up until now, there has been a lack of communication services in Korea that satisfy foreign customers,” and emphasized, “We will do our best to provide services so that we can be recognized as the number one mobile carrier in Korea by foreign customers as well.”