Your visa decides which jobs you can take in Korea. Foreign residents work across the economy, from software and teaching to factories and farms, and the route into each job is different. This guide lists 22 job types, with the visa, the Korean level, and the places to look for each.
Quick answer: the main job types and their visas
| Job type | Usual visa |
|---|---|
| Office and professional jobs (software, design, marketing, sales, finance) | E-7 (specific activity), or an open-work visa |
| Research and university teaching | E-3 (research), E-1 (professor) |
| English teaching | E-2 (conversation instructor) |
| Factory, farm, fishing, and construction work | E-9 (EPS) |
| Seasonal farm and fishing work | E-8 (seasonal worker) |
| Skilled trades after years in Korea | E-7-4 |
| Performers and artists | E-6 |
| Student part-time work | D-2 or D-4 plus a part-time permit |
| Short stays and flexible work | H-1 (working holiday), D-10 (job seeker), F-1-D (digital nomad) |
| Almost any job | F-5 (permanent resident), F-6 (marriage migrant), F-4 (overseas Korean, with listed limits) |
As you read, open Seoulstart Jobs in another tab to see real postings for these job types.
Where to find the openings
Start with Seoulstart Jobs. Disclosure: this is Seoulstart.
Seoulstart Jobs pulls listings from employers' own career pages and refreshes them every weekday. Most Korea roles come with a plain-English summary that shows the Korean level the posting asks for and the visa route it likely fits.
Ways to narrow the list:
- By function: engineering, design, data, product, marketing, sales, finance, and hospitality.
- By visa and language: the visa-sponsorship, Korean-not-required, and E-7 visa collections.
- By type of work: English jobs, internships, and remote jobs.
- By city: Seoul, Pangyo, Suwon, Songdo, and other city pages appear when they have live listings.
- By language: Vietnamese, Russian, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese editions each have a jobs language tab that lists jobs written in or asking for that language, for example /ru/jobs/language.
A posting in the visa-sponsorship collection mentions sponsorship in writing. It is not a promise from the employer.
For the full comparison of other boards, see Best Job Sites in Korea for Foreign Residents. EPS jobs run through the government portal instead of a job board. The Work24 (고용24) portal includes the foreigner-employment (EPS) services.
Foreign workers in Korea in numbers
As of May 15, 2025, about 1,109,000 foreign residents aged 15 or older who had lived in Korea 91 days or more were employed. That is 99,000 more than a year earlier. The count includes students and permanent residents, not only people on work visas.
Where they work:
| Industry | Employed foreign residents | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Mining and manufacturing | 498,000 | 44.9% |
| Wholesale, retail, accommodation, and restaurants | 226,000 | 20.4% |
| Business, personal, and public services | 148,000 | 13.4% |
| Construction | 107,000 | 9.6% |
| Agriculture, forestry, and fishing | 100,000 | 9.0% |
| Electricity, transport, communications, and finance | 30,000 | 2.7% |
By visa, the largest employed groups were E-9 non-professional employment (321,000), overseas Koreans (253,000), and permanent residents (123,000).
The E-9 quota for 2026 is 80,000, which is 50,000 lower than in 2025. Manufacturing gets 50,000, agriculture and livestock 10,000, fishing 7,000, construction 2,000, and services 1,000. The remaining 10,000 is a flexible reserve.
22 jobs foreign residents can get in Korea
Each entry gives the visa route, the Korean level to expect, a pay anchor where a government source exists, and where to look. Where no government source exists for pay, the entry says nothing about pay.
The E-7 floors below are the standard minimum annual salary for the visa. They apply from February 1 to December 31, 2026. Some occupations have their own wage standard set by the Justice Minister, and that standard applies instead. A job must also be on the E-7 designated list of about 90 occupations. Check the occupation in E-7 occupation codes before you apply.
Office and professional jobs
1. Software, data, and AI
Foreign degree holders and Korean-university graduates fill most of these roles. International companies and startups hire in English more often than traditional Korean firms.
- Visa route: E-7 (specific activity), if the job is on the designated list.
- Korean usually needed: depends on the posting.
- Pay anchor: the E-7-1 floor of ₩31,120,000 a year.
- Find openings: engineering, data, and AI frontier pages. Guide: E-7 visa.
2. Design (product, UX, and graphic)
Design teams at global-facing companies hire foreign designers with a degree or a portfolio.
- Visa route: E-7, if the job is on the designated list.
- Korean usually needed: depends on the posting.
- Pay anchor: the E-7-1 floor of ₩31,120,000 a year.
- Find openings: design roles. Guide: E-7 occupation codes.
3. Marketing, content, and localization
These roles suit bilingual graduates who can write for both a Korean and a global audience.
- Visa route: E-7, if the job is on the designated list.
- Korean usually needed: depends on the posting. Check the summary on each listing.
- Pay anchor: the E-7-1 floor of ₩31,120,000 a year.
- Find openings: marketing roles.
4. Sales and overseas business development
Companies that sell abroad hire bilingual staff to handle foreign customers and partners.
- Visa route: E-7, if the job is on the designated list. Your employer can confirm the exact category.
- Korean usually needed: depends on the posting.
- Pay anchor: the E-7 floor for the job's category, from ₩25,890,000 to ₩31,120,000 a year.
- Find openings: sales roles.
5. Product management
Product managers usually work at technology companies and startups with international teams.
- Visa route: E-7, if the job is on the designated list.
- Korean usually needed: depends on the posting.
- Pay anchor: the E-7-1 floor of ₩31,120,000 a year.
- Find openings: product roles.
6. Finance and accounting
Analyst and accounting roles go to degree holders. Licensed professions such as law, accounting, and medicine are a separate visa category, E-5, and need Korean credentials.
- Visa route: E-7 for most corporate roles, if the job is on the designated list.
- Korean usually needed: depends on the posting.
- Pay anchor: the E-7-1 floor of ₩31,120,000 a year.
- Find openings: finance roles and the fintech and crypto collection.
7. Research and university teaching
Researchers in natural science, social science, humanities, arts, and sports usually hold an E-3 (research) visa. University professors and lecturers usually hold an E-1 (professor) visa. Research and development jobs in high-technology industries also fall under E-3.
- Visa route: E-3 or E-1. Confirm your case with 1345.
- Korean usually needed: depends on the institution or company.
- Find openings: research roles, plus the deep tech and hardware and pharma and healthcare collections. University jobs are posted on university websites.
Language and education jobs
8. Teaching English
Citizens of Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the United States, and South Africa can teach English on an E-2 visa. You usually need a university degree from that country. A national of one of these countries who finished high school there and then earned a bachelor's degree at a Korean university also qualifies. Indian citizens with a degree and a teaching licence in English education (a TEFL, TESOL, or CELTA certificate does not count) can teach in public schools under the Korea-India CEPA. The public-school program EPIK requires a 100-hour TEFL, TESOL, or CELTA certificate unless you hold a teaching licence or an education degree.
- Visa route: E-2 (conversation instructor, 회화지도).
- Korean usually needed: the EPIK pages do not state a level.
- Pay anchor: EPIK pays ₩2.2 million to ₩2.8 million a month at Levels 2, 2+, 1, and 1+ outside Seoul. The Offices of Education are not hiring Level 3 applicants, so you must qualify for at least Level 2. Seoul uses its own scale. Teaching time is capped at 22 hours a week, and the contract runs one calendar year.
- Find openings: English jobs. Guides: teaching English in Korea, E-2 visa, hagwon contract red flags.
9. Teaching other foreign languages
Teaching a foreign language at a private institute (hagwon) or a school also requires an E-2 visa. Usually you must be a national of a country where that language is the mother tongue, with a university degree from that country. There are exceptions, such as a bachelor's degree from a Korean university after finishing school in that country.
- Visa route: E-2.
- Korean usually needed: depends on the school.
- Find openings: school and institute websites, plus the education collection.
10. Translation and interpretation
Translators and interpreters need strong Korean and strong skills in a second language. Agencies and companies with international business hire for these roles.
- Visa route: depends on the employer and the role. Open-work visas such as F-5 and F-6 need no sponsor. Employer-sponsored visas depend on the occupation list.
- Korean usually needed: strong Korean.
- Find openings: Seoulstart Jobs shows the Korean level each posting asks for. See the Korean-not-required collection for the opposite end of the range.
11. Multilingual customer support
Companies hire native speakers of Vietnamese, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, and other languages to support customers. The jobs language tabs on Seoulstart Jobs collect many of these roles.
- Visa route: open-work visas (F-4 with listed limits, F-5, F-6) need no sponsor. F-2 has some limits. On other visas, the employer must show the job fits your visa.
- Korean usually needed: depends on the posting.
- Find openings: the jobs language tab in your edition, for example /vi/jobs/language, /zh/jobs/language, or /ja/jobs/language.
Entertainment, gaming, and hospitality jobs
12. Entertainment and gaming companies
K-pop agencies and game studios employ office staff in marketing, operations, localization, and quality assurance. These are ordinary employees. The E-6 (arts and entertainment) visa is for performers, artists, and athletes, not for office staff.
- Visa route: office staff usually follow the E-7 route if their job is on the designated list. Performers and artists use E-6.
- Korean usually needed: depends on the posting.
- Find openings: the K-entertainment and gaming collections.
13. Hospitality (hotels)
Hotel front-office and guest-facing jobs go to people with service experience. A pilot announced in December 2023 also lets hotels and condos (hostels included) in Seoul, Busan, Gangwon, and Jeju hire E-9 workers as cleaners and kitchen assistants. Check whether the pilot still runs before you plan around it.
- Visa route: some guest-facing roles may fit an E-7 occupation, so check the occupation code with the employer. E-9 covers cleaner and kitchen-assistant jobs under the pilot.
- Korean usually needed: guest-facing roles usually need good Korean. Check each posting.
- Find openings: hospitality roles.
14. Care work
Care work has an E-7 route. Since July 2024, an E-7 care worker (요양보호사) occupation exists. The first one was issued in January 2025 to an international student who had graduated from a Korean university and held the care-worker certificate. The route is narrow, and new arrivals usually cannot use it.
- Visa route: E-7 care worker. The first visa went to a Korean-university graduate with the certificate.
- Korean usually needed: the Ministry of Justice page does not state a level.
- Find openings: care jobs are not a Seoulstart Jobs role page. Ask the care facility or your university international office.
Skilled, factory, and seasonal work
15. Factory, farm, fishing, and construction work (EPS)
Citizens of 17 sending countries can apply through the government Employment Permit System (EPS, 고용허가제): the Philippines, Mongolia, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Cambodia, China, Bangladesh, Nepal, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Timor-Leste, Laos, and Tajikistan. Russia and Japan are not on the list. Only the government and public bodies handle selection and placement. No private broker is part of it.
- Visa route: E-9. The first stay is 3 years. With re-employment, the total can reach 4 years and 10 months. Spouses and children cannot join on a dependent visa.
- Korean usually needed: EPS-TOPIK. The minimum score is 60 out of 100 for manufacturing, 30 out of 100 (pass/fail) for the fishing special track, and 45 out of 100 for other sectors. Selection goes by score rank up to the planned intake, so there is no fixed pass mark.
- Pay anchor: the 2026 minimum wage of ₩10,320 an hour, which is ₩2,156,880 a month on a 40-hour week.
- Find openings: the government portal Work24. Guides: E-9 visa and EPS Korea.
16. Seasonal farm and fishing work
Seasonal workers are brought in by Korean local governments, not through an open application by individuals. They come from partner local governments abroad, from the home-country families of marriage migrants, as parents of some international students, or from among foreign residents already in Korea who meet the conditions. Korea allocated about 109,000 seasonal workers for 2026. The maximum continuous stay is 8 months. Since January 23, 2026, only the state, local governments, and designated seasonal-worker institutions may recruit and place workers. Brokering is punishable by up to 3 years in prison or a ₩30 million fine.
- Visa route: E-8 (seasonal worker, 계절근로).
- Korean usually needed: not applicable for the application route.
- Pay anchor: the minimum wage of ₩10,320 an hour.
- Find openings: local governments, not job boards. Guide: E-8 seasonal worker scam prevention.
17. Skilled worker (E-7-4)
E-9, E-10, and H-2 holders with 4 or more years of stay in the last 10 years, who currently work normally at their workplace, can move to the skilled-worker visa. The 2026 quota is 33,000, down from 35,000. Applications run from March 1 to December 31, 2026, on a rolling basis until the quota closes. You need 200 of 300 points. The Korean-language requirement is deferred, not waived, through December 31, 2026, for applicants who score 150 or more on the other requirements. An employer can hire E-7-4 workers up to 30% of its Korean employees, or 50% in population-decline areas, root industries, and farming, livestock, and fishing.
- Visa route: E-7-4.
- Korean usually needed: the deferral ends December 31, 2026.
- Pay anchor: the E-7-4 floor of ₩26,000,000 a year (₩25,000,000 in farming, livestock, fishing, and coastal shipping).
- Find openings: your current employer and the Ministry of Justice application. Guide: E-7-4 visa.
Student, short-term, and flexible work
18. Student part-time work
D-2 and D-4 students need the permit (체류자격 외 활동허가) before any part-time job. The permit has no fee. A new employer needs a new permit. D-2 students can hold up to 2 workplaces for up to 1 year. D-4 students can hold 1 workplace for up to 6 months. Weekly hour limits depend on your degree level and Korean ability, so check them in part-time work on a student visa.
Students cannot work as delivery riders, courier drivers, substitute drivers, insurance planners, home-study tutors, or door-to-door sellers. Factory work is allowed only with Korean at TOPIK Level 4 or equivalent.
D-10-1 holders can get a separate part-time permit for a ₩120,000 fee. They must hold a Korean associate degree or higher earned less than 3 years ago, TOPIK 4 or Korea Immigration and Integration Program (KIIP) step 4 or above, and must never have held an E-1 to E-7 visa. The limit is 25 hours on weekdays (30 hours if you completed KIIP step 5 or above), with no limit on weekends and holidays.
- Visa route: D-2, D-4, or D-10-1 plus the permit.
- Pay anchor: the minimum wage of ₩10,320 an hour.
- Find openings: your university international office and the part-time boards in Best Job Sites in Korea.
19. Working holiday jobs
Most working holiday (H-1) holders can work up to 25 hours a week. Canadians can work full-time, up to 40 hours a week. Every other country keeps the 25-hour weekly limit, but some also cap how many months you can work, so check your own country's rules. H-1 holders cannot work as language instructors, professors, doctors, lawyers, or pilots, in jobs on the E-7 designated occupation list, in adult-entertainment or gambling businesses, or as private tutors.
- Visa route: H-1.
- Pay anchor: the minimum wage of ₩10,320 an hour.
- Find openings: see the part-time boards in Best Job Sites in Korea. Guide: working holiday visa.
For roles in English, also check English jobs on Seoulstart Jobs.
20. Internships
D-10 job-seeker visa holders can intern at one company for up to 12 months. The D-10 maximum stay rose from 2 to 3 years on October 29, 2025. Students on vacation can do an internship in an E-1 to E-7 field with the part-time permit. K-Trainee (D-4-2K) is a company-tailored internship for people from nine countries (Vietnam, China, Thailand, Japan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines). It covers university students aged 29 or under in their third year or above sponsored through a Korean company's program (TOPIK 2 or higher), and professional staff hired by a Korean company's overseas subsidiary for an internship in an E-7 professional or semi-professional field. It is an internship, not a job, and you return home afterward in principle.
- Visa route: D-10, D-2 plus the permit, or D-4-2K.
- Find openings: internships. Guides: D-10 visa and Korea internships.
21. Remote work for a foreign employer
The F-1-D digital nomad (workation) visa is made for people who own an overseas business or work for an overseas company and can work remotely. It restricts employment in Korea, so you cannot take a job here on it. On other visas, the sources Seoulstart checked do not give a clear rule for remote work, so call 1345 before you start.
- Visa route: F-1-D.
- Find openings: remote jobs. Guide: F-1-D visa.
22. AI data and training gig work
Platforms such as Outlier and DataAnnotation hire people in many languages for AI training tasks. If your visa does not cover the work, you need the Justice Minister's permission for activity outside your visa status first. Open-work visa holders do not need that permission.
- Visa route: an open-work visa, or the permit.
- Find openings: the platform's own site. Read the matching review first, for example Is Outlier AI legit? or Is DataAnnotation legit?.
Which visas let you work
| Visa | What work it allows |
|---|---|
| F-5 (permanent resident) | Any job, with no work restriction |
| F-6 (marriage migrant) | Any job, with no work restriction |
| F-4 (overseas Korean) | Free work within public order, except simple labour and other listed jobs. A February 12, 2026 reform opened 10 of 47 previously restricted jobs, and H-2 holders merged into F-4 |
| F-2 (resident) | Some limits |
| E-7 (specific activity) | A job on the designated list, at or above the salary floor |
| E-9 (non-professional employment) | Factory, farm, fishing, construction, and some service jobs through EPS |
| E-2 (conversation instructor) | Foreign-language teaching |
| D-2 and D-4 (students) | Part-time work only with a permit |
| D-10 (job seeker) | Job search and internships, plus a part-time permit for D-10-1 under conditions |
| H-1 (working holiday) | Work up to the hour limit for your country |
| F-1-D (digital nomad) | Remote work for employers outside Korea |
Doing work outside your visa without the permit can bring up to 3 years in prison or a ₩30 million fine, and deportation.
Detailed guides: F-4, F-5, and F-6 work rights, E-7 visa, E-9 visa, D-10 visa, working holiday visa, student part-time work, and teaching English in Korea.
How to get hired
- Pick your visa route first. The table above shows which jobs it covers.
- Write a Korean-style resume. See Korean resume.
- Prepare for the interview. See Korean job interview guide.
- Check the offer for warning signs before you sign. See job offer red flags.
- Plan your start. See first 90 days at a Korean job.
For a step-by-step visa plan for office jobs, see How to Find a Non-Teaching Job in Korea. For pay rules, see the minimum wage guide and foreign worker salaries.
When you are ready to apply, start on Seoulstart Jobs and set up a job alert to hear about new postings.
What changed in 2026
- The E-9 quota fell to 80,000 from 130,000.
- H-2 and F-4 merged into F-4 on February 12, 2026, and 10 previously restricted jobs opened to F-4 holders.
- The D-10 maximum stay rose to 3 years and the single-company internship cap rose to 12 months (October 29, 2025).
- EPIK is not hiring Level 3 applicants.
- The 2026 E-7 salary floors apply through December 31, 2026.
- The minimum wage rises to ₩10,700 an hour on January 1, 2027.
Not sure what work your visa allows? Call the Immigration Contact Center (외국인종합안내센터) at 1345 before you accept an offer.