There are six belts: white, yellow, green, blue, red and black. White is given to beginners and black is given to students who have progressed through the grades and have a solid foundation for learning the techniques of Taekwon-Do.

The definitions of the belts are as follows:

White Belt 
Signifies innocence, as that of the beginning student who has no previous knowledge of Taekwon-Do. Yellow Belt
Signifies the earth from which a plant sprouts and takes root as the foundation of Taekwon-Do is being laid. Green Belt
Signifies the plant’s growth as Taekwon-Do skills begin to develop. Blue Belt 
Signifies the Heaven towards which the plant matures into a towering tree as training in Taekwon-Do progresses. Red Belt 
Signifies Danger, cautioning the student to exercise control and warning the opponent to stay away.

Black Belt

Opposite of white, therefore signifying the maturity and proficiency in Taekwon-Do, also indicates the wearer’s imperviousness to darkness and fear.

Students must grade through the following belts in the following order:

white belt given to the beginner (10th gup)
white belt yellow tags (9th gup)
yellow belt (8th gup)
yellow belt green tags (7th gup)
green belt (6th gup)
green belt blue tags (5th gup)
blue belt (4th gup)
blue belt red tags (3rd gup)
red belt (2nd gup)
red belt black tags (1st gup)
through to Black Belt (1st dan/degree).