How to make foreign direct investment?

There are three kinds of investment method; acquisition of foreign currency securities, acquisition of claimable assets arising from loans, and payment of capital for overseas operations or payment for establishing, expanding, and operating branches in foreign countries. 

Acquisition of foreign currency securities includes;

① Establish a foreign corporation under foreign laws in order to operate businesses in foreign countries

② Acquire investment shares of a foreign corporation in the pertinent year in order to participate in management activities of established foreign corporations

③ Acquire additional shares or investment shares of a corporation that 

An investment in which stocks or investment equities acquired to take part in the management of a juristic person established under foreign statutes  account for not less than 10/100 of the total number of stocks issued or the total amount of equity investment made by the relevant foreign juristic person.

Provided, establishment of any of the following relations with the foreign juristic person concerned, where the ratio of investment is less than 10/100: 

① Dispatch of executive officers; 

② Conclusion of a purchase and sale contract for raw materials or products for      a term of one year or more; 

③ Conclusion of a contract for offering and introducing technology or conducting     joint research and development; 

➃ Conclusion of a contract for receiving an order of overseas construction and       industrial plant construction; 

Foreign currency loan acquisition is a way of acquisition of foreign currency securities. It is the loans with a maturity of not less than one year made to a relevant foreign juristic person by a resident who has invested therein  

Payments of capital to operate overseas sales activities or establish, expand, and operate branch offices in foreign countries include;

① Costs of establishing a branch or an office and operating funds; 

②  Funds necessary for a resident to establish and operate an enterprise other than in the form of a juristic person in a foreign country;  

③  Funds necessary for any overseas resource development business under Article 2 of the Overseas Resources Development Business Act or any infrastructure development project: Provided, That survey funds for the development of overseas resources and purchase funds for overseas resources shall be excluded. 

◆ Source: The Export-Import Bank of Korea