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日本語Hiring a foreign worker in Korea follows one of 4 routes, depending on the status of stay the applicant holds now. If the status carries no employment restriction, or restricts only certain jobs, you can hire without a separate permit. A worker on an employment status who worked at another company must first obtain a workplace change permit, and a person whose status is not an employment status, such as study or job seeking, must first obtain a change of status permit to be hired as a regular employee. E-9 (Non-professional Employment) and H-2 (Working Visit) workers are hired through the employment permit and special employment procedures of the public employment center (job security agency).
How does the hiring route differ by the applicant’s status of stay?
| Applicant’s current status | Hiring route | What the employer checks first | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| F-5 (Permanent Residence), F-6 (Marriage Migrant), most F-2 (Residence) | You can hire without a separate immigration permit | The scope of work for F-2 differs by sub-item. Items (d) and (f) are free of restriction only while the person continues in the field of the previous status, and some items are not listed in Decree Article 23(2), so check the detailed code | Immigration Act Article 10-3(1), Decree Article 23(2) |
| F-4 (Overseas Korean) | You can hire without a separate immigration permit | Check that the job is not one where employment is restricted, such as simple labor | Decree Article 23(3) |
| E-7 (Special Occupation) or another employment status (excluding E-9 and H-2), coming from another company | Hire after the worker obtains a permit to change or add a workplace | Check whether the worker is a professional designated by Presidential Decree who only has to report within 15 days of the change instead of getting a permit | Immigration Act Articles 18(2) and 21 |
| D-2 (Study), D-10 (Job Seeking) or another status that is not an employment status | Hire after the worker obtains a change of status permit | Check that the job falls within the activities of the employment status the worker is changing to | Immigration Act Articles 18(1) and 24(1) |
| E-9, H-2 | Hire after obtaining an employment permit or confirmation of special employment from the employment center | You must first file a job offer for Korean nationals, and for E-9 anyone other than a job security agency may not take part in selection or placement | Act on the Employment of Foreign Workers Articles 6(1), 8 and 12 |
How do you check which route applies to an applicant?
Start with the status of stay and detailed code printed on the alien registration card or the domestic residence report card. Article 18(1) of the Immigration Act requires a foreigner who wants to work in Korea to obtain a status of stay that permits employment, and Article 18(3) prohibits anyone from employing a person without such a status.
Article 23(1) of the Enforcement Decree lists the statuses that permit employment: C-4 (Short-term Employment), E-1 (Professor) through E-10 (Crew Employment), and H-2. In addition, part of F-2 and F-6 are not subject to the employment limits of their status category under Article 23(2), and F-4 is not subject to activity limits except for the restricted cases in Article 23(3). F-5 is not restricted in scope of activity or period of stay under Article 10-3(1) of the Immigration Act. A person whose status is not on this list and is not covered by another special rule in Article 23 must obtain a permit first in order to work.
The scope of work for each status is explained in a related post. This post focuses on the procedure you follow after confirming the status.
Can you hire a foreign worker who worked at another company right away?
An employment status such as E-7 comes with a designated workplace. Article 18(2) of the Immigration Act prohibits a foreigner with an employment status from working anywhere other than the designated workplace. So to hire a foreign worker who is changing jobs, the worker must first obtain a permit to change or add a workplace under Article 21(1) of the same Act.
Article 21(2) prohibits anyone from employing, or arranging the employment of, a foreigner who has not obtained this permit. The employer should schedule the start date after the permit is issued. However, a person with professional knowledge, skills or techniques designated by Presidential Decree only needs to report within 15 days from the date of changing or adding the workplace. Under Article 12(7) of the Act on the Employment of Foreign Workers, this workplace change provision (Immigration Act Article 21) does not apply to H-2 workers.
In what order do you hire an international student or a job seeker?
D-2 and D-10 are not among the employment statuses in Article 23(1) of the Decree. To hire such a person as a regular employee, the person must first obtain a change of status permit under Article 24(1) of the Immigration Act. The employer should first check that the job falls within the activities of the status being sought (for example, E-7) and let the person start work after the change is approved.
Like a D-2 student doing part-time work, a person who wants to keep the current status and also carry out activities of another status must first obtain permission for activities outside the status under Article 20 of the same Act. When bringing in a foreigner from abroad for the first time, the inviting company may apply for a certificate of visa issuance confirmation on the foreigner’s behalf under Article 9 of the same Act.
Why must E-9 and H-2 workers be hired through the employment center?
Article 6(1) of the Act on the Employment of Foreign Workers requires anyone who wants to employ foreign workers to first file a job offer for Korean nationals with a job security agency. For E-9 workers, an employer that still could not hire after receiving job placement for Korean nationals applies for an employment permit under Article 8(1), and selects from qualified candidates recommended by the job security agency under Article 8(3) and (4). For H-2 workers, an employer that has received confirmation of special employment hires from people registered on the foreign job seeker list under Article 12(3) and (4), and must report to the job security agency once the worker starts work.
Article 8(6) provides that no one other than a job security agency may take part in the selection, placement or other hiring of foreign workers. That is why E-9 workers can only be hired through the employment center procedure, and a private job placement agency may not take part in their selection or placement. H-2 workers can also be hired only after the confirmation of special employment and through the foreign job seeker list. The order of the employment permit application is explained in a related post.
This post was checked against the current provisions of the Immigration Act, its Enforcement Decree and the Act on the Employment of Foreign Workers as of November 1, 2026.
How New World Job checks
When New World Job (Hwang Yunsang Job Placement Office) receives a job offer, we confirm the duties and working conditions, then check the status of stay and workplace permit on the applicant’s alien registration card or domestic residence report card before making an introduction. If an applicant first needs a workplace change permit or a change of status permit, we let you know before hiring. E-9 and H-2 workers are hired through the employment center procedure, so New World Job does not introduce them.
Hwang Yunsang Administrative Office files workplace change and change of status applications on your behalf and prepares employment permit application documents under a separate contract. Whether you use this service has no effect on the introduction.