K-ETA states one exemption outright, and it is by age.
The age exemption
K-ETA’s eligibility guidance names “those who are 17 years old and younger or 65 years old and older (on the date of entry)” as exempt from submitting a K-ETA application. Your age counts on the day you enter Korea, not the day you apply or book.
Who K-ETA is for
K-ETA is built for “people intending to stay for a short period of time for travel, visiting relatives, attending events or conferences, or business purposes (no commercial activities allowed).” These are visa-free visitors. A trip outside that description is outside both K-ETA and its age exemption.
Everyone else needs four things to apply: “01 Valid passport 02 Valid e-mail address 03 ID photo 04 Credit or debit cards that can be used to pay the fee.” The published cost is “10,000 KRW approximately USD $7~8 per person.” How and where to apply is in our K-ETA guide.
Passport comes first
Age is the only exemption the source states. K-ETA itself is framed around a country list: “you can apply for K-ETA if you hold a passport from countries or regions listed below,” and applicants are told to “check country and period of stay” before applying.
We have no verified figures for which passports are on that list or what period of stay each gets, so we do not reconstruct it. Look up your own passport on the official K-ETA eligibility page.