Travel guide
Yes — in most cases, you can get the remaining balance on a physical T-money card back before you leave Korea. Where you should go mainly depends on how much money is left on the card, and there's usually a small fee.
This guide focuses on a standard physical T-money card — the kind most visitors buy at a convenience store or subway station. Mobile T-money, the Climate Card, Cashbee, and other transit products follow different rules.
Think of it in three tiers, from smallest balance to largest. The exact cutoffs vary a little by location, but this is the general shape of it.
Small balance
A participating convenience store (GS25, 7-Eleven, CU, emart24)
Limits vary by chain — usually up to 20,000–30,000 won
Larger balance
A customer service center inside a subway station in the Seoul metropolitan area
Regular balance refunds, plus partial refunds of 10,000–50,000 won
Very large balance
T-money Town, T-money's own service center
Up to 500,000 won a day. ID needed from 50,000 won; 100,000 won or more is paid by bank transfer the next day
At a convenience store or a subway station customer service center, the refund fee is 500 won, and it comes out of your balance automatically — you don't pay it separately. T-money Town has its own fee schedule, so check the current fee before you visit.
This fee is separate from the price you paid for the card itself. The refund only covers whatever balance is left on the card; it does not include the card's original purchase price.
Participating convenience stores can handle smaller refunds, but the limit is not the same at every chain. By T-money's own published guidance, GS25 handles refunds under 20,000 won, 7-Eleven and most independent convenience shops handle up to 20,000 won, and CU and emart24 handle up to 30,000 won. It is not true that any convenience store can refund any amount.
Convenience stores refund the balance only — the card's purchase price is not included. If a store can't process your refund (the amount is too large, the system is down, or the staff member simply isn't able to help), that doesn't mean refunds aren't possible — try another branch, or head to a subway station service desk instead.
Once your balance is more than a convenience store can handle, head to a customer service center inside a subway station in the Seoul metropolitan area. They handle regular balance refunds, and they're also one of only two places (T-money Town is the other) that offer partial refunds — taking out a set amount between 10,000 and 50,000 won, in 10,000 won steps, instead of emptying the card.
If your balance is over 50,000 won, T-money's guidance points you to T-money Town, the company's own service center, or a bank ATM with T-money refund service linked to an account in your name. T-money Town can refund up to 500,000 won per person per day, and asks for ID (name, birth date, contact) on refunds of 50,000 won or more. The bank ATM route is generally more useful if you already have a Korean bank account than for a short visit.
One thing to know before you go: a refund of 100,000 won or more at T-money Town isn't paid in cash on the spot. The balance comes off your card that day, and the money is transferred to a bank account after 6 p.m. the next business day. You'll need to bring ID and a copy of your bankbook.
If you don't have a Korean bank account, check with T-money before you visit so you know what will work for you.
No. A refund gives you back the remaining balance you loaded onto the card, minus the fee — not the few thousand won you originally paid to buy the card itself. That purchase price stays with the card issuer for a normal, working card.
A card that no longer works is handled differently from a normal working card. There's no quick cash refund at a convenience store counter — you file a refund request instead, and in most cases the money goes to a bank account.
You can pick up a refund envelope at a subway station customer service center in the Seoul area, or a mail-in envelope at a participating convenience store. Either way, the refund is paid to the bank account you write on the envelope within 10 business days. Members of the T-money Card & Pay website can also upload photos of the front and back of the card, before and after cutting it. That refund usually arrives the next day (up to 5 business days if it needs an extra check), but it never includes the card's purchase price. You can also go to T-money Town in person, where smaller refunds may be handled on the spot while larger refunds are paid to a bank account.
Since most of these routes pay into a bank account, it's worth sorting out a broken card before your last day in Korea.
The outcome also depends on why the card stopped working. If it genuinely malfunctioned within two years of its first top-up, T-money refunds the card's purchase price along with the balance. If the card was damaged through normal wear, dropping, bending, or cutting, only the remaining balance is refunded — not the purchase price.
Keep exploring
Travel guide
Buying, recharging, and tapping a T-money card for the first time — the guide to read before this one if you haven't used T-money yet.
Read guide →
Travel guide
Tap in and out, follow line colors, survive long transfers, and find the right exit before a huge Seoul station swallows you.
Read guide →
Travel
Map-friendly HAEMIL guides for exploring Korea through neighborhoods, food, local routes, and small details.
Read guide →
