Pre-check
What your situation actually requires
Choose your nationality and the university you are applying to. You will see the documents you need and how many hours you may work. No sign-up.
Start with your nationality. Even if you have not chosen a university, we will find ones that fit.
How a university’s rating changes the screening
| Rating | Universities | How the visa is screened |
|---|---|---|
| Premium certified | 39 | Admission letter alone. Financial evidence waived regardless of nationality |
| Certified | 181 | Admission letter alone, but the 21 designated and 5 focus countries submit financial evidence |
| General / consulting | Not published | Management capacity, academic record and finances reviewed together |
| Visa-restricted | 16 | Issuance restricted in principle. Master’s, doctoral, research and exchange excluded |
Part-time work hours (in force since July 2023)
| Programme | Korean requirement | Below | Met | Preferential | Weekends / holidays |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Associate / Bachelor yr 1–2 | TOPIK 3 | 10 hrs | 25 hrs | 30 hrs | No limit |
| Bachelor yr 3–4 | TOPIK 4 | 10 hrs | 25 hrs | 30 hrs | No limit |
| Master / Doctorate | TOPIK 4 | 15 hrs | 30 hrs | 35 hrs | No limit |
Preferential means one of: enrolled at a certified university, top grades last term, or strong Korean. KIIP (stage 3 / 61 points, stage 4 / 81 points) and King Sejong Institute (intermediate 1 / 2) can stand in for TOPIK.
English-track applicants need TOEFL 530 (CBT 197, iBT 71) · IELTS 5.5 · CEFR B2 · TEPS 601 or above, regardless of year. Note this visa threshold sits above the admission threshold universities apply (TOEFL iBT 59) — an easy thing to miss.
For language courses (D-4) the ministry manual gives no row in its hours table. We cannot settle that figure for you; confirm it with your university’s international office and the immigration office.
Work that is not permitted
- Construction (a single detection brings a departure order, regardless of count)
- Industries under the seafarer employment (E-10) visa
- Special-category labour such as courier driver, delivery rider, designated driver, insurance agent, home-study tutor or door-to-door sales
- Employment through dispatch, subcontracting or job brokering (industry-linked internships arranged by regional universities designated by the Minister of Justice are the exception)
- Work far from your place of study
- Private tutoring (strictly limited given the nature of the setting and the students)
- Conversation teaching at foreign-language academies for minors
- Businesses against good morals or public order
- Workplaces of employers barred from visa issuance for past illegal hiring
Work people wrongly assume is barred
- Manufacturing — allowed with Korean level 4 or higher (it used to be barred in principle)
- Safety or play assistant at English kids cafes and English camps
- Part-time or full-time seasonal work
- Support roles in professional fields (E-1 to E-7, except E-6-2)
- Professional-field internships for work-study-linked students
- Professional-field internships for degree students during vacations
Common questions
I am Mongolian. Do I need financial evidence for a certified university?
Yes. Mongolia is one of the 21 designated countries, so financial evidence is required even at a certified university. At the 39 premium certified universities the published table carries no nationality condition, so it appears to be waived.
How many hours a week may I work?
On a degree programme, 25 hours on weekdays if you meet the Korean requirement, or 30 hours if you are at a certified university or have top grades or strong Korean. For master’s and doctoral students it is 30 and 35. Below the requirement it drops to 10 weekday hours (15 for postgraduates). Weekends and holidays carry no hour limit on degree programmes.
Is a visa-restricted university impossible?
For undergraduate study, issuance is restricted in principle. Master’s, doctoral, research and exchange programmes are not covered by the restriction. A university can also hold different ratings for its degree programmes and its language course, so check the programme first.
My university is not on the certification list. Is that a problem?
Absence from the list does not mean the university is sanctioned. The lists of general and consulting universities are simply not published, so the two cannot be told apart. You will be reviewed on both grades and finances, so prepare on the assumption that financial evidence is needed.
Can I work as a delivery rider?
No. Delivery riders count as specially contracted workers and fall outside part-time work permission, as do courier drivers, substitute drivers, insurance agents, tutoring teachers and door-to-door sellers. Working without permission draws a fine notice, and repeat cases lead to deportation.
Sources and dates
- University ratings — Ministry of Education and Ministry of Justice, announced 2026-02-12, applying 2026-03 to 2030-02
- Part-time work and stay — Ministry of Justice residence manual, as at 2026-01-30
- Finances and language — Ministry of Education standard procedures, revised 2025-03-14
This pre-check combines published guidelines and announcements as general information. It is not legal advice on your case. Whether a visa is issued is decided by the Korean mission and the immigration office on the individual file. If you need help preparing documents, ask us.