Abroad Study in Korea
Abroad Study Counseling Services
If you've heard about "D2 code" and assumed it's just another name for the regular D2 visa, it isn't — it's a specific alternative visa pathway available only through certain universities, and for many Nepali students in 2026, understanding it can be the difference between a rejected application and an approved one. This page explains what D2 code actually means, the official government system behind it, and who should be considering this route.
"D2" refers to the Study visa itself. "Code" refers to 사증발급번호 — the Confirmation of Visa Issuance, commonly known as CVI.
Under the standard process, you apply for your D2 visa directly at the Korean Embassy in Nepal with your full document set, and the embassy issues or rejects your visa from there. Under the CVI pathway, your visa is instead first approved through the Immigration Office in Korea that has jurisdiction over your university's location — your university handles this application on your behalf. Once approved, you receive a CVI confirmation number. At that stage, your embassy visit in Nepal becomes far simpler: you submit your passport along with your CVI confirmation number, rather than going through a full document review a second time.
Access to CVI isn't arbitrary — it's tied to a formal Korean government accreditation system called the International Education Quality Assurance System (IEQAS), known in Korean as 교육국제화역량 인증제. This system is jointly administered by Korea's Ministry of Education and Ministry of Justice, who evaluate universities every year on their capacity to properly recruit, support, and manage international students.
Universities that pass this evaluation are designated as IEQAS Certified Universities. Among those, a smaller group that demonstrates especially strong performance — sustained certification over multiple years, low rates of student visa overstay, and strong international student support systems — is designated as an Excellent Certified University (우수인증대학), the highest tier.
This dual-ministry structure is exactly why the certification matters so much: it isn't just an education-quality label — it's the same evaluation the Ministry of Justice uses to decide which universities can offer simplified visa pathways like CVI and E-Visa in the first place.
According to Korea's official Study in Korea government portal, IEQAS certification comes with real, published benefits:
On the other side, universities that fail to meet IEQAS standards are officially designated as requiring "visa screening enhancement" — meaning stricter scrutiny of language proficiency, financial capability, and other factors for their international applicants. This is the government's own classification, not an assumption on our part.
IEQAS certification is valid for four years but is reviewed annually, and the list of certified and excellent-certified universities changes each year as institutions are added, renewed, or removed. As of the most recent published evaluation, the Ministry of Education certified 181 universities and 123 language institutes at the standard tier, with 39 institutions holding Excellent Certified status — including recognized names such as Sejong University, University of Seoul, Kyungpook National University, and UNIST.
Because this list changes yearly, we always verify a university's current certification status directly against Korea's official Study in Korea government portal before advising a student — rather than relying on a university's own marketing claims about being "certified."
Every D2 visa, regardless of which route issues it, is classified under one of these codes, per Korea's Visa Services Manual:
| Code | Program |
|---|---|
| D-2-1 | Associate Degree Program |
| D-2-2 | Bachelor's Degree Program |
| D-2-3 | Master's Degree Program |
| D-2-4 | Doctoral Degree Program |
| D-2-5 | Research Program |
| D-2-6 | Exchange Student |
| D-2-7 | Work–Study Linked Study |
| D-2-8 | Visiting Student |
For the 2026 intake, the Korean Embassy in Nepal has been rejecting standard visa applications where a student's GPA falls below 3.2 out of 4.0. In practice, GPA has become the deciding factor at the standard embassy stage — which is exactly where IEQAS certification changes the picture:
For a student below 3.2 GPA, this makes university selection the deciding strategic decision — checking a university's current IEQAS status before applying is worth as much as checking its academic reputation.
(The 3.2 GPA threshold reflects current Korean Embassy Nepal practice based on our own case experience — embassy-level enforcement can shift between intakes, so we confirm the current standard with you directly during counselling.)
It refers to 사증발급번호 — the Confirmation of Visa Issuance (CVI), an approval processed through a university's local immigration office in Korea, offered as an alternative to direct embassy application in Nepal.
IEQAS (International Education Quality Assurance System) is Korea's official university certification system, jointly run by the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Justice. It's the actual basis for which universities can offer CVI, E-Visa, and relaxed visa screening — it's not just an education-quality label.
Yes. IEQAS certification is reviewed annually and is valid for four years at a time. A university certified last year isn't automatically certified this year, which is why we verify current status before advising any student.
Because in current practice, the Korean Embassy in Nepal is rejecting standard applications from students below a 3.2 GPA. CVI gives students at certified universities a route around that specific risk.
Yes — per Korea's official guidance, certified universities also offer relaxed visa screening criteria generally and additional part-time work hour allowances, on top of the CVI/E-Visa pathway itself.
Korea's official Study in Korea portal (run by the Korean government) publishes the current list of IEQAS Certified and Excellent Certified universities. We check this directly with you during counselling rather than relying on a university's own claims.
Bring your academic transcripts and come talk to us at our Hetauda office — we'll check your target university's current IEQAS status and tell you honestly whether the standard D2 route or the D2 code (CVI) pathway gives you the stronger outcome. Prefer to start from your phone? WhatsApp us at +977 9769741767 and we'll walk you through it.
Visa classifications, university certification, and GPA requirements are based on official Korean government guidance and are subject to annual change. We confirm current requirements with you directly during your consultation.
