# SMS to South Korea

Policy reference updated 2026-07-13T12:47:21.960429Z. Confirm current requirements, sender eligibility and your use case before launch.

[Contact sales](/demo?product=sms&source_page=%2Fsms-api%2Ffeatures%2Fdestinations%2Fsouth-korea)

- Country code: KR (dialing +82)
- Channels available: sms, whatsapp, voice
- Two-way messaging: yes

### Sender types

| Sender | Direction | Throughput (msg/s) | Registration | Sender ID | Timeline |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Alphanumeric Sender ID | one-way | — | none | overwritten; registration unavailable (random number) | — |
| Long code (phone number) | two-way | — | none | preserved | — |

### Rules

- Template pre-approval: no
- Quiet hours: recorded; the sending window is not stated

#### International Sender Prefix
`[국외발신]` or `[국제발신]` will be automatically appended to SMS on the operator's end. These phrases mean "Overseas Sending" or "International Sending" respectively. These words are **not** counted in the message length.

#### Character Limits
One SMS segment can contain up to **140 bytes** only, which is equivalent to:
- **140 characters** using GSM-7 encoding
- **70 characters** using UCS-2 16-bit encoding

#### Concatenated SMS (LMS)
Concatenated SMS is known as **LMS** in South Korea. By default, it is **not supported**. Messages may be:
- Trimmed
- Delivered with different parts
- Split into parts that are not received in the correct sequential order

[How sender-ID registration works →](/sms-api/features/compliance/sender-id-registration)

## How sending works

Use the same SMS API across supported destinations. Prepare an eligible sender, enable the destination and apply the recipient permission your message requires. Track the accepted message through carrier submission and the delivery reports available for that route.

## The rest of the SMS platform

One API, one set of keys. Explore the other capabilities.

- [Sender-ID registration](/sms-api/features/compliance/sender-id-registration): Pre-register alphanumeric and dedicated senders where countries require it.
- [Routing](/sms-api/features/routing): Destination controls, carrier connectivity and reported routing outcomes.
- [Numbers](/sms-api/features/numbers): Long codes, short codes, toll-free, and alphanumeric sender IDs.
- [Sending](/sms-api/features/sending): The send API: segments, Unicode safety, batch, and idempotency.
- [Two-way](/sms-api/features/two-way): Inbound SMS and conversational replies as HMAC-signed webhooks.
- [All destinations](/sms-api/features/destinations): Coverage, sender types, and rules for every country Bird reaches.



## Related resources

- [SMS overview](/docs/guides/sms/overview) (docs)
- [SMS destinations](/sms-api/features/destinations) (product)

[Get an implementation brief](/learn/workspace?topic=sms-destinations)