What every teacher should know before accepting a job in Korea

This is advice for E2 and E1 Visa holders. Most of the rules/advise listed here does not apply to F1-2, F4, F5, E5, E7 or other visa holders. For further information about your visa limitations, always inquire at your local Immigration Office before starting a new job.

1. It is illegal to work without a proper visa.
You must have the visa sticker in your passport before you can start work- without exception. If your employer asks you to work before you have your visa sticker, refuse. Insist on getting your visa before you teach your first class or you are working illegally.

2. Your visa is associated with ONE location.
If your employer asks you to work at more than one physical school, you need to get Immigration permission and apply for a secondary workplace permit. EPIK and GEPIK are exceptions. EPIK employees can legally work in multiple locations without Immigration permission.

3. Working "Privates" or "Part-Time Jobs" without Immigration permission is illegal.
Working in a second registered business place is possible (a secondary workplace) if you have permission from Immigration. However, working "privates", or tutoring at a non-business, is illegal.

4. You need Immigration permission to work at a camp outside of your primary workplace. It will either be registered as a secondary workplace (if you currently hold an E1-2) or you may be eligible for a Temporary Employment visa. Inquire at your local immigration office before teaching at a camp to ensure your legality.

Knowing your rights and finding a good school

Koreabridge does not offer blacklist or greylist services. There are a number of sites that keep lists of employers and recruiters who are less than desirable. If you host a site or hear of a site not listed below please let us know at 'manager at koreabridge.com' and we will add it to our list.

One of the most valuable sites for teachers looking to understand their rights is www.efl-law.org There are a number of things you should look for before signing a contract. EFL-Law.com has a very comprehensive guide to contract information at www.efl-law.com/contracts.html There is also a very useful FAQ , a discussion forum, and a lot more valuable information on that site for teachers.

The Hagwon Checklist   www.hagwonchecklist.com
A free site that gives teachers a chance to review a school as well as find multiple perspectives from a variety of teachers about a school. Teachers submitting their schools rate them as "great, good, poor or unacceptable".

The Mother of Greylists   www.geocities.com/koreagraylist
This site provides alphabetical listings of schools in Korea that have received complaints and the complaints in question.

The Korean Hagwon Blacklist   www.geocities.com/hagwonblacklist/
The goal of this site is to: "make it extremely difficult for schools who have previously mistreated teachers to find new recruits. We aim to do this by letting other teachers, as well as recruiters, and the schools themselves know who is blacklisted and why."

The Korean Schools White List   www.geocities.com/teflgroup/koreawhitelist.html
The mission statement of this site is to provide information about decent, "white listed" schools so all teachers (new and seasoned) will know about the "good schools" that treat people fairly.

English School Watch   www.englishschoolwatch.org/index.php
This site provides a forum on which one can "blacklist" a school as well as some helpful information about working overseas.

ESL Teachers Board   www.eslteachersboard.com
Most schools on their "School Review" board are Chinese, but there are a few Korean schools on the list.

Leon's Greylist   efl.htmlplanet.com/greylist.htm
This page is for those looking to become expatriate English teachers in Korea, and/or for those expats already in-country experiencing labor-related problems. It primarily functions as a watch list of institutions to watch out for. Secondarily, this page contains copious amounts of advice on how to deal with many possible problems in the Republic of Korea.

Blacklisted    blacklists2003.proboards13.com/
Information Sites about Teaching Conditions in Korea