K-Beauty Shopping in Korea 2026: Hours, Tax Refund

TL;DR — 4 things to know

Olive Young is not a 24-hour shop. The big tourist stores close at night: Myeongdong Town is listed at 10:00–22:30 daily, Hongdae Town closes at 22:30 and Olive Young N Seongsu at 22:00. We could not find any Olive Young branch open 24 hours. Check each store in the Olive Young store finder.
After closing, try a convenience store. CU, GS25 and 7-Eleven now sell basic and small-size cosmetics, and CU runs more than 600 beauty-focused stores with a wider range. Many convenience stores are open around the clock, but not all.
Tax refund starts at ₩15,000 per receipt. Bring your physical passport. Instant refund at the till covers purchases under ₩1,000,000 each, up to ₩5,000,000 per stay, and the goods must leave Korea within 3 months.
Sheet masks and cosmetics are liquids for the cabin. On international flights from Incheon, each container must be 100 ml or less and all of them must fit in one 1-litre clear bag. Pack a big haul in your checked bag.

What this guide does not cover. Product prices and promotions change every week, so we give no product prices. Store hours come from official store pages checked in October 2026 and can change — check the store finder before a late trip. How much you can bring into your home country without paying duty is set by your country, not by Korea.

Where to Buy K-Beauty

Each channel does a different job. Every branch sets its own hours.

🛍️

Olive Young

Closes at night

Korea's biggest health and beauty chain. Tourist-area stores have foreign-language staff, and some offer instant tax refund.

🏪

Convenience Store

Late night

CU, GS25, 7-Eleven, emart24. Basic and small-size cosmetics. Many open 24 hours — check the door.

📦

Daiso

₩5,000 or less

Every item costs ₩5,000 or less. About 150 beauty brands, including Daiso-only lines from known Korean brands.

💊

Pharmacies

Store hours

Visitors buy derma skincare here for specific concerns such as acne or a weak skin barrier.

🎨

Seongsu

Varies

Olive Young N Seongsu, brand flagships such as Tamburins, and pop-up stores that change often.

✈️

Incheon Duty-Free

Airside

Since April 2026 the main perfume and cosmetics zones are run by Lotte (DF1) and Hyundai (DF2).

Big Olive Young Stores for Visitors

Hours as listed on Olive Young's official pages, checked October 2026.

Myeongdong

Olive Young Myeongdong Town

53 Myeongdong-gil, Jung-gu. The official site lists instant tax refund from ₩15,000 with your physical passport, a tax refund desk with foreign-language help on the 2nd floor, WeChat Pay and Alipay, and gift wrapping.

10:00–22:30 daily
Hongdae

Olive Young Hongdae Town

57 Hongik-ro 6-gil, Mapo-gu. The store finder listed it closing at 22:30 (Saturday hours shown when we checked).

10:00–22:30
Seongsu

Olive Young N Seongsu

13 Yeonmujang 7-gil, Seongdong-gu, about 100 m from Seongsu Station Exit 4 (Line 2), according to the official store page.

10:00–22:00

Sale calendar: the Olive Young Sale (올영세일) runs four times a year — March, June, September and December — according to Olive Young's newsroom (September 2026). Smaller promotions change all the time, so trust the shelf tag on the day.

Tax refund details: the Myeongdong Town site says hygiene products, shopping bags and dried fruit are not eligible, and that the refund is about 5–8% of the price, not the full 10%. Show your passport before you pay. Not every branch offers instant refund, so ask at the till.

Convenience Stores After Hours

When Olive Young has closed, this is the practical option. The range is small.

CU

Beauty-focused CU stores

CU has designated more than 600 stores as beauty-focused branches, each carrying about 80 cosmetics items — roughly 2.5 times a regular store (Maeil Ilbo, August 2026).
GS25

GS25 own cosmetics

GS25 sells its own sun cream and foam cleanser plus collaboration makeup, priced in the ₩3,000 range (same report).
Hours

Not every store is 24 hours

Many convenience stores open around the clock, but some close at night. The hours are posted at the entrance.

Seongsu and Other Options

Seongsu is where new beauty stores and pop-ups open. Hours vary, so check each brand's official channel.

Olive Young N Seongsu

A large Olive Young store with brand pop-ups that change often.

Seongsu Station Exit 4 (Line 2) · 10:00–22:00

Tamburins Flagship Store Seongsu

Korean fragrance and hand-care brand. Its official store list names flagships in Seongsu, Hannam, Samcheong and Sinsa, plus Haus Dosan.

Check hours on tamburins.com

Pharmacies

Foreign visitors increasingly buy derma skincare at pharmacies for acne, blemishes or a weak skin barrier; a pharmacy near Seongsu Station is a well-known example (Digital Daily, September 2026).

Ask the pharmacist for help

Daiso

Daiso-only beauty lines from established brands — for example TONYMOLY Bonsep, too cool for school Tag and CLIO Twinkle Pop — at ₩5,000 or less.

Tax refund confirmed at DAISO Myeongdong Main Branch

Pop-up stores change fast. Concept stores and pop-ups in Seongsu change their hours and locations often. Check the brand's official website or Instagram on the day you go.

Tax Refund — Step by Step

The same rules apply at Olive Young, department stores and other Tax Free shops.

Step 1

Shop where you see a Tax Free / Tax Refund sign

Bring your physical passport — the store needs it to issue the refund.
Step 2

Spend at least ₩15,000 on one receipt

The minimum was lowered from ₩30,000 to ₩15,000 in 2024. Keep receipts and refund slips until you leave Korea.
Step 3

Option A — instant refund at the till

Where offered, the tax comes off at checkout: under ₩1,000,000 per purchase and up to ₩5,000,000 in total per stay. Above that, pay the full price and claim later.
Step 4

Option B — refund at Incheon Airport

If refund goods are in your checked bag, tell the airline at check-in. Then use the refund kiosk in the departure hall. If the kiosk marks you for a customs check, show your passport, the unused goods and the slips at the customs desk.
Step 5

Collect the money after security

The refund is paid at a kiosk or counter in the duty-free area after security, in cash or to your card. Goods must leave Korea within 3 months of purchase.

Checked bag? Incheon Airport asks you to tell the airline at check-in that the bag holds refund goods. The bag is tagged and handed back so customs can see it if needed, then you drop it at the oversized-baggage belt. Goods in your carry-on simply go through the kiosk with you.

How much you get back: less than the full 10%, because refund operators keep a fee. On Global Tax Free's refund table, a ₩100,000 purchase returns ₩7,000 and a ₩15,000 purchase returns ₩1,000. Your slip or the kiosk screen shows the exact amount.

Packing & Customs

Incheon Airport rules for international flights. Domestic flights have no liquid limit.

Item	Cabin bag	Checked bag
Sheet masks	Each pouch 100 ml or less, all in one 1 L clear bag	Yes
Toner, cream, sunscreen, cleanser	Each container 100 ml or less, all in one 1 L clear bag	Yes
Cosmetics bought at airside duty-free	Allowed in the sealed duty-free security bag; keep it sealed until your final destination	—

Sheet masks count as liquids. Each pouch is soaked in serum, and Incheon Airport applies the liquid and gel rules to cosmetics. A few pouches fit in your 1-litre bag; a big haul goes in checked luggage.

Customs

Korea's USD 800 allowance is for people entering Korea

The Korea Customs Service's duty-free allowance of USD 800 per traveller applies to goods brought into Korea. It is not a limit on what you take out. When you arrive home, your own country's allowance and declaration rules apply — check them before a big haul.
Declare

Cash over USD 10,000 when leaving Korea

If you leave Korea with more than USD 10,000 in total cash or cheques (any currency, including won), you must declare it to customs.

Duty-Free at Incheon Airport

New operators run the beauty zones from 2026.

Since April 2026, the departure-area duty-free zones that sell perfume, cosmetics, liquor and tobacco (DF1 and DF2) are run by Lotte Duty Free (from 17 April) and Hyundai Duty Free (from 28 April). They replaced Shilla and Shinsegae, which gave up the concessions in 2025 (Newsis, April 2026). Prices change with exchange rates and promotions, so compare on the day.

Order online, collect at the airport. Korean duty-free shops' online stores let departing travellers order before the flight and collect the goods at the duty-free pickup counter after passport control (Lotte Duty Free lists pickup counters in T1 and T2). If you change planes on the way home, keep duty-free liquids sealed in the security bag and check the rules at your connecting airport.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a 24-hour Olive Young in Seoul?

We could not find one. Olive Young's official pages list Myeongdong Town at 10:00–22:30 daily, Hongdae Town closing at 22:30 and Olive Young N Seongsu at 10:00–22:00 (checked October 2026). Hours differ by branch, so check the store finder in the Olive Young app or website. Late at night, a convenience store is the practical option.

Can I buy K-beauty products at convenience stores in Korea?

Yes, but the range is small. CU, GS25 and 7-Eleven sell basic and small-size cosmetics, and CU has more than 600 beauty-focused branches carrying about 80 cosmetics items. Many convenience stores are open 24 hours, but not all.

Does Olive Young give an instant tax refund?

Olive Young Myeongdong Town gives an instant refund on purchases of ₩15,000 or more when you show your physical passport, and some other tourist-area branches do too, but not every branch. Instant refund covers purchases under ₩1,000,000 each, up to ₩5,000,000 per stay. The refund is about 5–8% of the price, not the full 10%.

Can I take sheet masks in my carry-on?

Only a few. Incheon Airport applies the liquid and gel rules to cosmetics, and each sheet mask pouch counts as a container. Pouches of 100 ml or less are fine if they all fit in your one 1-litre clear bag. Put larger quantities in your checked bag.

How much K-beauty can I bring home without paying duty?

That depends on your home country, not Korea. Korea's USD 800 duty-free allowance applies to travellers entering Korea, so it is not a limit on what you take home. Check your own customs rules before a big haul. When leaving Korea, you must declare cash and cheques over USD 10,000 in total.

Shop K-Beauty Day and Night