9 Korean phrases for the bank and the phone shop
The bank and the phone shop are where most new arrivals in Korea first run out of English. The clerks are patient and the forms are bilingual, but the questions come fast and the answers decide whether you walk out with a working card. A few fixed lines turn a stressful hour into a routine one.
All of these are polite 요 speech aimed at a clerk. You will hear formal -ㅂ니다 back from them, which is normal; you do not need to match it.
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계좌 개설하러 왔어요.
gyejwa gaeseolhareo wasseoyo.
I'm here to open an account.
Literally: (I) came in order to open an account.
-(으)러 왔어요 states your purpose at any counter. 계좌 is the account and 개설 is the formal word for opening one; 계좌 만들고 싶어요 (I want to make an account) is the plainer version and works just as well.
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외국인등록증 있어요.
oegugindeungnokjeung isseoyo.
I have a residence card.
Literally: Foreigner registration card, (I) have.
The first thing a bank asks for. Without it most banks will open only a limited account, so have it out before you say anything else. Clerks shorten it to 등록증.
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체크카드 만들고 싶어요.
chekeukadeu mandeulgo sipeoyo.
I'd like a debit card.
Literally: Check-card, (I) want to make.
체크카드 is a debit card and 신용카드 a credit card; the English 'check' comes from a dated use and confuses everyone. Cards are 만들다 (made), not bought or requested.
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해외 송금 되나요?
haeoe songgeum doenayo?
Can I send money abroad?
Literally: Overseas remittance, does it work?
되나요? (does it work / is it possible) is the question to learn for every bureaucratic counter in Korea. 송금 is a transfer by wire; the everyday transfer between Korean accounts is 이체.
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수수료 얼마예요?
susuryo eolmayeyo?
How much is the fee?
Ask it at the bank for transfers and at the phone shop for activation. 수수료 is any service fee; 무료 (free) is the answer you are hoping for.
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비밀번호를 잊어버렸어요.
bimilbeonhoreul ijeobeoryeosseoyo.
I forgot my PIN.
Literally: (I) forgot the secret number.
비밀번호 is a PIN and a password alike, for the card, the banking app, and the phone. Koreans shorten it to 비번 in speech. 잊어버리다 is forgetting; 잃어버리다 with an ㄹ is losing an object, a mix-up worth avoiding at a bank.
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유심 하나 주세요.
yusim hana juseyo.
One SIM card, please.
Korea says 유심 (USIM) rather than SIM. Convenience stores sell them too, but a phone shop (대리점) will register it for you, which you need a passport or residence card for.
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선불 요금제로 할게요.
seonbul yogeumjero halgeyo.
I'll go with a prepaid plan.
Literally: With a pre-pay rate plan, (I) will do.
선불 is prepaid and 후불 is postpaid; a 요금제 is a plan. -(으)로 할게요 (I'll go with) is the phrase for choosing between options anywhere, from phone plans to lunch sets.
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데이터 무제한 있어요?
deiteo mujehan isseoyo?
Do you have unlimited data?
무제한 is 'no limit' and the word on every plan poster. The clerk will probably answer with gigabytes and a price per month (한 달에), so have your numbers ready.
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Two words will carry you through both errands: 되나요? (is it possible?) for anything you want to check, and 얼마예요? (how much?) for anything that costs. Clerks will also ask 신분증 있으세요? (do you have ID?) and 번호 몇 번이에요? (what's the number?) at some point, so recognising those two questions is as useful as anything you say yourself.