E-2 teachers · Source guide reviewed 17 October 2026

Your E-2 teaching timeline.

From the offer to your first year, then renewal, a new school or your next step.

Teachers reviewing a lesson planner in a classroom

Three separate clocks. Count entry, employment and immigration-authorised stay separately. The months below are planning prompts, not a twelve-month visa guarantee. A new contract or booked appointment does not extend your stay.

Your private date notes

Entry dateContract end dateAllowed-stay expiry

Notes only — no calculated legal deadlines, reminders or stored records.

Before you fly.

1. Offer and eligibility: verify the legal employer, authorised teaching activity and workplace; evaluate pay, total hours, housing and early-exit terms in writing.
2. Documents and visa: follow the current sponsor and consulate checklist. Degree authentication, criminal records and nationality-specific requirements differ. EPIK extras are programme requirements, not universal E-2 requirements.
3. Arrival arrangements: confirm the entry permission, address in Hangul, airport transfer, delayed-arrival contact and induction. Keep essential originals in hand luggage.

01
Days 0–7
Confirm safe housing, transfer, school induction, timetable and medical/registration route
Keep: Housing photos, signed contract, contact sheet and visa/entry record
02
Days 7–30
Complete required health check; prepare/file registration as instructed; arrange phone, bank and payroll
Keep: Appointment/filing receipts, medical result, proof of housing
03
By day 90
For stays over 90 days, verify registration completed within applicable 90-day entry deadline
Keep: Residence-card details, filing evidence and authorised-stay expiry
04
Months 3–6
Review teaching workload, deductions, coverage and leave; report any address change promptly
Keep: Monthly payslips, hours, contributions and leave records
05
Months 9–10
Choose next-year path; check extension window, new employer eligibility or gap/departure plan
Keep: Written offer/contract and immigration questions
06
Months 11–12
File extension/transfer steps when required; agree final-pay and housing handover plan
Keep: Filing results, exit/transfer evidence, pay and handover checklist

Deadline checks, not assumptions.

Registration · generally 90 days: For stays over 90 days, generally complete registration within 90 days of entry; special cases differ. A reservation alone is not filing.
Address change · generally 15 days: Registered residents generally report within 15 days of moving. Updating your school is not the immigration report.
Workplace change · generally 15 days: E-2 generally uses reporting within 15 days of the change, not the E-9 prior-permission procedure. Confirm your facts before starting.
Extension window · 4 months: General guidance opens applications four months before allowed-stay expiry, through expiry. Verify the channel and case; file by the applicable deadline.

The employer’s separate reportable employment-change/end notification is generally due within 15 days. There is no blanket 30-day grace period after employment ends. Confirm with Immigration 1345.

Choose the next year.

Your next step

New contract + E-2 stay extension

Signing again does not automatically extend immigration permission. Apply before your authorised stay expires.

Your action checklist

Get a new signed contract and current employer documents. Check your passport and actual allowed-stay expiry; do not use the final payday as the deadline.Typical extension preparation: application form, passport, residence card, new contract, proof of residence and current fee. Immigration can request additional school or personal documents.Check the current extension window: general government guidance permits applications from four months before expiry up to expiry; verify the E-2 filing channel and your case with HiKorea/1345. A booked visit is not a filing.Keep the submission receipt and extension decision. Confirm travel/re-entry arrangements with 1345 before travelling while an application is pending.If employment continues without actual termination, do not assume severance must be paid at each contract anniversary. Keep your continuous-service records.

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All four paths · PDF

Compare all four paths

A · Renew at the same school

Signing again does not automatically extend immigration permission. Apply before your authorised stay expires.

B · Move to another eligible E-2 school

E-2 generally uses a report within 15 days of the workplace change, not the E-9 prior-permission procedure. Confirm the facts before starting.

C · Finish with no new employer

There is no blanket 30-day grace period. Do not rely on the residence-card expiry alone once the sponsored job ends.

D · Closure, early dismissal or dispute

An employment claim does not automatically extend a visa or permit work elsewhere. Seek immigration and labour advice urgently.

B · Move to another eligible E-2 school · Workplace-change report — and possibly extension

E-2 generally uses a report within 15 days of the workplace change, not the E-9 prior-permission procedure. Confirm the facts before starting.

☐ Confirm the new institution and teaching activity are eligible for your E-2, and agree a signed contract and genuine start/change date. Do not confuse a new contract with automatic immigration compliance.
☐ Prepare the workplace-change report, passport, residence card, new contract and required new-school documents; confirm exact documents, filing channel and timing with immigration. The general E-2 report deadline is 15 days after the change.
☐ EasyLaw’s Manual summary says an extension is also needed if the new contract period plus one month exceeds the remaining authorised stay. Ask immigration to calculate the relevant dates in your case.
☐ The previous employer has its own employment-end notification. Keep completion/termination evidence and ask whether a letter of release or another explanation is needed for your particular early-exit transfer. A letter of release is not universally required in every completed-contract transfer.
☐ A fresh overseas E-2 application is not automatically mandatory for every in-country transfer. Confirm accepted previously submitted documents, including criminal checks, with immigration and EPIK where relevant.

C · Finish with no new employer · Resolve the gap before employment ends

There is no blanket 30-day grace period. Do not rely on the residence-card expiry alone once the sponsored job ends.

☐ Call 1345 before your last employment day. Give contract-end date, allowed-stay expiry, nationality, current status and intended departure or job-search plan.
☐ Ask whether you qualify for D-10 or another status, whether an application is permitted in-country, the deadline and the effect of the employer’s end report. A job-search intention is not authorisation.
☐ If a change of status is available, prepare and file through the required process and wait for the applicable permission. Do not teach during a gap or while merely intending to apply.
☐ If leaving Korea, confirm the lawful departure date, residence-card return requirements, insurance/pension closure and housing handover. Obtain final wage/tax records before losing access.
☐ Keep written confirmation and filing/departure evidence. Neither a recruiter’s promise nor an unused date on a card guarantees lawful stay after a status-changing event.

D · Closure, early dismissal or dispute · Protect evidence and immigration status in parallel

An employment claim does not automatically extend a visa or permit work elsewhere. Seek immigration and labour advice urgently.

☐ Save your signed contract, termination/closure notice, timetables, messages, payslips and bank records. Write a dated factual account; keep copies outside school systems.
☐ Call 1345 promptly with the dismissal/closure date and ask about reporting, lawful stay, transfer documents, D-10 possibilities and any departure/status-change deadline.
☐ Call Labour 1350 about unpaid wages, deductions, termination and complaint routes. Remedies, coverage and filing deadlines depend on the facts; consider an adviser for contested dismissal.
☐ Do not assume a letter of release is always possible or universally indispensable. Ask immigration what alternative evidence it accepts for closure, dismissal or employer non-cooperation.
☐ Confirm housing access and document safety. Do not start teaching elsewhere until your E-2 workplace/status position is confirmed; keep labour and immigration receipts separately.

Your source guide and official contacts.

Read the complete E-2 guide →

Immigration 1345 · Labour 1350. Timeline and all four paths reproduce the existing guide; its source review date is 17 October 2026, not a new verification of intake dates.

The intake-team handout.

The calendar and timeline are planning companions. The arrival checklist and paperwork cards cover the practical steps. Individual university, employer and immigration instructions take priority.

Arrival checklist →Paperwork kit →Downloads Library →

Independent guidance, not a government form or legal advice. Ticks and personal date notes stay in this visit only; they are not sent or saved.