Employers of foreign staff in Korea must report changes within 15 days

This guide is for companies in Korea with foreign staff, and for their HR teams. When a foreign employee leaves, dies, cannot be located, or has an important contract term changed, the company must report it within 15 days. Late reports bring a fine on the company, not the employee: up to ₩2 million under the Immigration Act, or up to ₩5 million for workers hired through the Employment Permit System (고용허가제), the program for E-9 and H-2 workers.

Who reports, and where

Under the Immigration Act (출입국관리법), whoever employs a foreigner must report to the head of the regional immigration office (지방출입국·외국인관서) within 15 days. Using an agent does not shift this duty from the company.

One resignation can fall under two laws, with different forms and fines. The employee's status of stay (체류자격, the visa category on the residence card) decides the route.

When the reason appears on both lists, one report to either office counts for both. Under Immigration Act Article 19(3), an Article 19 report by the employer of a worker covered by the Foreign Workers Act also counts as the Article 17 report if the fact is an Article 17(1) reason, and Article 19(4) has the immigration office notify the job security agency under the Employment Security Act (직업안정법) without delay. Under Article 17(2) of the Foreign Workers Act, a report to the employment center likewise counts as the immigration report if the fact is an Article 19(1) reason, and Article 17(3) provides for notice to immigration.

When the 15 days start

Article 24(1) of the Enforcement Decree of the Immigration Act sets four start dates, and two of them run from the day the company learned of the event:

• Dismissal or resignation: the day of the dismissal or resignation.
• Death: the day the company learned of it.
• Whereabouts unknown: the day the company learned of it.
• Important change to the employment contract: the day of the change.

Death and disappearance often reach the company late, so record when you learned of them. A resignation counts from its date even if you did not know, so the deadline can pass during a long handover.

Important changes to the contract

Companies miss this reason most often because it arises on the company's own side. Article 24(3) of the Enforcement Decree defines it:

1. the employment contract period is changed;
2. the employer or representative changes;
3. the workplace name changes;
4. the workplace moves to a new address;
5. the worker is dispatched under another law, such as the Act on the Protection, etc. of Dispatched Workers (파견근로자 보호 등에 관한 법률), including a change of dispatch site.

Item 2 has a proviso. In these four cases, a change of employer or representative does not count:

• the employer is a central government agency or a local government;
• the employer is a school under Article 2 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (초·중등교육법) or Article 2 of the Higher Education Act (고등교육법), or a higher education institution under a special act;
• the representative of a corporation changes;
• the foreigner changed workplace under Article 21(1) of the Immigration Act.

So a sole proprietorship that changes its owner has a reportable change of employer, but a corporation that replaces its CEO does not.

Hiring a foreigner who changes jobs

The fourth case is a change of workplace. Under the main text of Article 21(1) of the Immigration Act, a foreigner who wants to change or add a workplace within their status of stay needs prior permission from the Minister of Justice (법무부장관). The proviso lets professionals specified by presidential decree report within 15 days of the change or addition instead. Article 26-2(1) of the Enforcement Decree defines them as holders of a status from 14. Professor (E-1) to 20. Specific Activities (E-7) in Table 1-2 (별표 1의2) who meet requirements in a Minister of Justice notice. Breaching this reporting duty also carries a fine of up to ₩2 million (Article 100(1), item 3).

For the company, the key provision is Article 21(2): it prohibits employing, or arranging the employment of, a foreigner without permission to change or add a workplace. When hiring an experienced foreign professional, check that the permission or report is complete, not just the résumé.

Track extensions of stay

The employee applies, but the company must provide attachments such as a certificate of employment, the employment contract and the business registration certificate. Article 25(1) of the Immigration Act requires extension permission before the period of stay ends. Government24 (정부24, the government service portal) lists:

• Common documents: application form (별지 제34호서식, Form No. 34), passport or foreigner entry permit, residence card (외국인등록증), proof of the place of stay.
• Online applications go through Hi Korea (하이코리아, hikorea.go.kr), the immigration portal. Statuses that cannot apply online: D-3, D-8, E-7, F-2, F-6, G-1 and some F-1.
• Fee: ₩60,000; ₩30,000 for marriage migrants (결혼이민, F-6); none for corporate investment (기업투자, D-8).
• Processing time: within 14 days of receipt.

E-7 holders must therefore book a visit to the competent office, which becomes a bottleneck in busy periods. Start preparing documents 90 days before expiry and fix the filing route 60 days before. Unpaid health insurance contributions can also become an issue in the extension review.

Checklist

• Sort foreign employees into E-9/H-2 holders and others.
• Assign each status of stay one filing office: immigration or the employment center.
• Record start dates: the resignation or dismissal date, or when you learned of a death or disappearance.
• Log contact attempts for a missing employee as proof of when you learned of it.
• List contract period changes, company name changes and office moves as reportable events.
• Do not report a corporation's CEO change as a change of representative: it is excluded.
• Before an experienced foreign hire starts, confirm their workplace change permission or report.
• Add each expiry date of stay to the HR calendar with a 90-day reminder.
• For E-7, allow for the booking bottleneck and fix the filing route 60 days before expiry.
• Track contract renewal cycles and periods of stay in one table.

For employment insurance rules, see Employment insurance for foreign employees in Korea depends on visa status.