The New Korean E2 Visa: A Teacher's Story
This is a story in the words of an American teacher who recently went through the experience of applying for and receiving a Korean E2 visa after the new regulations of December 15th, 2007. The new regulations for E2 visas in Korea have created a bureaucratic mess for consulates around the world, educational institutes in Korea and ultimately for teachers wishing to find employment. But the bottom line is the new regulations increased waiting periods for paperwork to be processed. And "visa runs" are still available for teachers renewing their contracts. The medical exam and criminal background check are stipulations every public school teacher and university professor has had to endure before in Korea.
Although we are directly quoting the teacher on ESL Daily, they wish to remain anonymous for personal reasons. As always, you can leave feedback, comments or questions after the article. We have also provided some useful links to E2 visa resources for Canada and America.
An American Teacher:
"I've been in Korea [for] two years and my second contract was up last December,
amidst the thick of all the new visa regulation confusion. I . . . signed another contract for March 1st, hoping some of the BS would either blow over or at a very minimum be figured out and agreed upon by that time, almost three months later."
"At first all I was dealing with was the background criminal record check and the medical exam."
"[Regarding] the background check, Apostille and all - through the mail, over two weeks, [and] about $30. The story goes like this. First, I went to my local police station. 10 minutes and with the help of a nice [clerk] I received a piece of paper stating I had no criminal record, in pen. This piece of paper had no stamp, no signature, nothing official whatsoever, more like a mothers note or something . . . so going to the local police station was a complete waste of time."
"Then I went to my state Department of Justice website. They had an easy link for background checks, to print out a request form. [Aside; on that form it had [a] space for fingerprints, and [indicated] submitting them was NOT necessary, just recommended [as a] guarantee that you [were] you and not someone else. I did not include my fingerprints] I filled out the form, and included a note requesting the document be certified/notarized. [I] mailed that in with an $18 processing fee, and got the official notarized document a week or so later. **To get any document Apostille-d, it MUST be notarized**"
"Then my 'notarized official background check document' needed the Apostille sticker deal. So when I got the doc back in the mail from the DofJ [Department of Justice], I then went to the State Secretaries Office website, printed out another request form for the Apostille, and sent that form, my notarized document, and $10 into their office. Another week or so and then my notarized official background check document had a nice shiny Apostille sticker and further signatures on it. I mailed it off to my boss [in Korea]."
"THEN... more weeks later, my boss, armed with my background check, my diploma, my sealed transcripts, and maybe other documents, got a visa certificate number for me. With that, I had to go apply for my visa and have an interview at the nearest Korean Consulate, which [was] in Chicago. Which [for me] me [was] 300+ miles (~500km) away."
"I protested heartily. I had been told, [in] Korea, that returning teachers didn't need the consular interview; it was supposed to be for1st-timers. Well, the newest 'official' word is, any party wanting an E1, E2, E3 visa is supposed to [have an] interview, with some exceptions and those with experience fall within those exceptions. However, it is still the Consul's authority to request an interview, from anyone. In brief, it is up to them, they have the right to request an interview. I figured since these are new regulations they must be excited about them and so, at this time anyway, [they] are requesting interviews from pretty much everyone. The consular office was busy, busy with teachers like myself."
"Now for you dodgers, I've heard stories about people coming up with tales of how it would be impossible for them to get to the Consulate and so requesting a web cam interview, which was at least in one case granted. Also, a buddy of mine was summoned to the Consulate, but with his vast power of Hangulmal [Korean language], [he] sweet-talked the lady into forgoing the interview and sending his things through the mail."
"My powers are weak, and I don't have a web cam, so off I went to [Chicago]. Yes, it was a Gigantic waste of time, and trust me I was bitter... but really, it wasn't much different than going to Japan for the visa. I had a couple Goose Islands with some deep-dish, stayed right in downtown, there and back in 2days, and it was all on my boss'
dime anyway, so to me it was kind of six in one half, a dozen in the other."
"The interview was HILARIOUS. He asked: 1) Where my last name came from 2) About my experience in my two years in Daejeon 3) My possible long-term plans in Korea and 4) Was surprised and delightedly commented on the little Hangul I wrote on my visa application. It was less than 10 minutes. [After] a $45 fee, another week [delay] and today I FINALLY HAVE MY PASSPORT WITH MY E2 VISA IN IT."
"Now I can [go] back to Daejeon. But since I have everything in hand, I wonder will they still demand a medical exam? I've obviously been willing [to] jump though some hoops, because I dig Korea; but drawn blood is something I'm not too excited about."
In response to the teacher's query, the answer is "yes." The medical exam is necessary to teach in Korea. And the blood tests check for HIV/AIDS as well as drugs, unlike China or Taiwan which specify the first or second, respectively. The medical check is a form you download and complete in your country of origin to be included in your package for the E2 visa. The medical exam is something you have to complete at an officially designated hospital or clinic within 90 days of your arrival in Korea and it is attached to your Alien Registration Card, i.e. you cannot receive an ARC card without first completing the medical exam.
It should also be noted that the criminal background check now necessitates a VSSP (Vulnerable Sector Screening Program), at least in Canada, which can only be done by request from an employer. So make sure to receive a letter before you pay for and submit a criminal background check. Also, make sure the envelope is sealed or the Korean consulate will not recognize it as official and will refuse to notarize it.
For E2 visa info for Vancouver, Canada, refer to:
www.can-vancouver.mofat.go.kr/eng
A very helpful, informative video on the new E2 process:
http://www.asknow.ca/visa.aspx
For apostille info and forms for the United States:
http://www.apostille.us/Documents/apostille.shtml
By Spencer McCall
Subscribe to ESL Daily to receive news and information pertinent to ESL and EFL teachers
Categories: Finding ESL employment,Spencer McCall,2008,Visa,ASIA,Government,Korea,Immigration,esl reform
My local Police Station in Small Town, OK, USA (pop. 30,000) gave me a typed local background check with a notary from their office. I still got the Apostille from the State Capital Building in day by driving there. This was good enough for the Suwon Immigration Office. My hagwon got my former hagwon to transfer employment during the last month of my contract so they were able to do an extension to my visa.
Reply to this
I believe this guy's story, but after having to go to Japan once to get my E-2, I was surprised to see that his haagwon picked up the bill. I met several teachers who had to pay their own way to Japan for a visa. My haagwon gets the U.S. criminal check on the web, and then sends it off to the apostille company. It takes 5 days to complete thanks to Fed-ex. The drug screening is currently changing, ans supposedly the marijuana test has been dropped (Korea Herald April 4th), but the other test remain. The tests have to be conducted at big hospitals (데병원-Dae Byoung Won), not doctor's offices though. If you complete your contract and don't leave the country, you shouldn't have to do any of this, but as with Korea, you never know...(because they don't know either!)
Reply to this
Couldn't agree with you more. It seems that the laws are changing on a daily basis and different at every location. My friends just went to the Korean embassy in Vancouver and ran into huge problems. They were asked to give all the required documents to the embassy (even though they were in Korea for about 2 years prior), however, they already sent them to Korea for processing. I also heard that another teacher had to submit a medical check (HIV and drugs) to the embassy prior to coming to Korea. It is best to make a phone call to the embassy before attempting the visa process.
Reply to this
I also signed a new contract with my school, in February of this year. Even though i am taking a 4 month vacation before i return in July, they renewed my visa and alien card as if i was simply staying on (instead i am doing a huge amount of world traveling and visiting home during this time).
However i was told that as i am staying on at the same school, this arrangement is just fine... even though i already have my new visa stamp and alien card, i just hope they are going to let me back into Korea at the end of June after a 4 month absence...!!
Reply to this
This article has been updated. Korea now does not require the marijuana testing see: here
Reply to this
Prior comments validate my rejections to
offers to teach in Korea.
Korea will not miss me anymore than I will miss it since many seem to be interested in jumping on command to go there. I find several other countries offer a better opportunity on friendly terms.
Reply to this
I was wondering if anyone taught from the e2korea.com website, if its legit i have an interview on tuesday and hopefully its a good oppurtunity for me, please let me know?
Reply to this
I took a look at the site. It appears to be a regular recruiting agency based in the USA. As long as they follow the proper hiring processes, I do not see how they could be illegal. To tell you honestly, this is the first time I have seen the website, but as long as you try to gather as much information before you go, I do not see a real problem. Just make sure that all the visa policies are met, you take a good look over the contract before you sign and you talk to the SCHOOL directly at some point to talk about their particulars. You may wish to put a post on http://eslcafe.com forum to see if anyone has used the service before. Also, you may want to ask the school them self if they have had previous teachers and if you can contact them. I think the school that you would be working for is the major concern, not so much the recruiter.
Reply to this
I submitted all my documents to my recruiter over 3 weeks ago and still have not gotten my visa issue number. My recruiter and the school say they have no idea why it is taking so long. Is this happening to anyone else? I thought it was only suppose to take 5 days.
Reply to this
In my experience it takes about a week. However, there is no guaranteed time frame. I believe I read somewhere it may take up to a month. It probably depends on what office it is brought to and how much work the officers have to do. I am sure your school director/principal is doing the best he can and has already made phone calls to ensure the process has been initiated. I would give it another week or two... then begin asking. But seeing that you are in a foreign country there is not much you can do, except wait. If you start asking too many questions to your director, that may make him frustrated. Koreans do NOT like you questioning these kind of situations. Know that your arrival to come to work is top priority for him and he is doing the best he can. If you do not receive the visa issuance number after 2 weeks send me a private email and I can give you some advice. jim at esldaily.org
Good Luck
Reply to this
The exact same thing is happening to me at the moment. I submitted my documents to the school over 3 weeks ago and am still waiting for my visa issue number. Michael, how long did it you eventually wait before you got the number? I don't know if I should be worried or not. Is there a possibility that something is wrong with my documents and therefore I haven't received the number? Can somebody please offer me some advice.
Reply to this
In the past I have heard 10 days to 2 weeks waiting is to be expected. For myself it has always been about a week. Three weeks does sound a little bit long, but I would not be sweating it. The person you should be talking to is your employer, they are the ones that should be in contact with the institution. Perhaps it is done already and just needs to be picked up, or perhaps they are just busy processing an extra normal number of visas this month. But... I would talk to your employer first.
Reply to this
Thank you very much for the response!! I think I will give it a few more days before calling the school. I know Korea had a couple of public holidays last week and my recruiter tells me that they would have rejected my documents earlier if there was a problem. I guess I just have to be patient and wait! Thanks!
Reply to this
Patience is probably the greatest virtue to have in Korea. When in Rome do as the Romans right... things are always done at the last moment and the last moment seems to be always rushed. Most likely your recruiter will call you 3 min after the number is released and ask you to be in Korea within 36 hours lol. And yes, no news is good news. Good luck! Please reply after your receive your visa number and let us know the time frame that it took.
Reply to this
I received my visa number today!!!Very happy!!!It took about 3 weeks to be issued. Thank you for the help!
Reply to this
Great news!!! Good luck in Korea!!!
Reply to this
Hello, I would like to inform you with this information. We help a lot of students process their background check via Department of Justice and FBI. After they obtain their criminal history record we help them obtain an apostille, so they can teach in other countries.
Below is our information:
EXPERTISE: We have years of experiences serving clients throughout the United States and around the world.
RATES: You will find that our service is affordable; we have rate plans priced to fit your needs.
FREE SHIPPING: Free return FedEx shipping within the United States for documents mailed to us.
SAME DAY OR 24-HOUR APOSTILLE TURNAROUND TIME: Call us for details about our expedited services.
BACKGROUND CHECK APOSTILLE PACKAGE: Call us for Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation background check services including Apostille.
Office Locations:
Apostille Pros
2706 Harbor Boulevard, Suite 206
Costa Mesa, California 92626
Office Hours: Monday - Friday (10am-6pm)
By Appointment Only
8665 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 410
Beverly Hills, California 90211
Office Hours: Monday - Friday (8:30am-5:30pm)
Telephone & Fax:
Toll Free within the U.S: 1.866.338.8687 (8am-8pm PST)
Telephone: 1.949.335.5540 (8am-8pm PST)
Fax: 1.714.369.8361
Website: http://apostillepros.com/
Thank you for your time,
Apostille Pros
Reply to this
Happy not to be among those wishing to teach in Korea... For a breath of fresh air folks should try China.
Reply to this
Authentication Experts (also called authxperts) provides reliable, fast and low cost Apostille and Embassy legalization services for documents intended for international use. Our growing clientele speaks for our professional & quality service.
Our services include-
Retrieval of documents from different agencies in United States
Apostille or Certification from the Secretary of the State
Authentication by the US Department of State
Embassy Legalization
http://www.authxperts.com">http://www.authxperts.com
Authxperts is professional services firm providing document legalization services to individuals and corporates. Countries which are not members of The Hague Convention do not issue, accept or recognize Apostille certificates in respect of US public documents. There are over one hundred such foreign countries currently.
If a foreign country where you require your American document to operate is not a signatory to The Hague Convention, its Embassy, Consular, diplomatic or trade representative (e.g. United Arab Emirates and Taiwan) in United States normally attends to the legalization of American documents.
In most cases it will require the document to be authenticated in the first instance by the notary, followed by seal of the Secretary of State and US State Department in Washington D.C.
Each foreign country has its own specific requirements, procedures and fees when asked to legalize an American document for use in its country. It may be a requirement, for instance, that the contents of the document are translated from the original language to English language or into their country's own language, and that such translation also be authenticated by the respective departments.
We at Authxperts attend to all the complicated, cumbersome and difficult processes associated with the legalization of American documents by Embassies or Consulates in United States of America.
We also assist American Citizens residing in other foreign countries, to obtain Apostille Certificates for their American public documents including Birth, Marriage, divorce and Death Certificates. Contact us for further information if you require assistance of this kind.
Visit- http://www.authxperts.com">http://www.authxperts.com
Reply to this
Well it all depends on how much time you have on your hands to the research and make a few mistakes a long the way. For the majority it is easier to pay the fees of the professional and go about doing or sorting out other things that require urget attention. Or maybe simply relax and enjy while your complete documents will be shipped to you.
Reply to this