How it works
A D-2 or D-4 visa does not let you work by itself. You need a separate permit for activities outside your status (체류자격 외 활동허가), called the part-time work permit (시간제취업 허가), before your first shift. How many hours it allows depends on your course, your Korean level and your grades.
Weekly hour limits
| Course | Below Korean standard | Standard met | Preferential |
|---|---|---|---|
| Language course (D-4) | 10 | 20 | 25 |
| Associate degree, junior college (D-2-1) | 10 | 25 | 30 |
| Bachelor's degree, year 1 to 2 (D-2-2) | 10 | 25 | 30 |
| Bachelor's degree, year 3 to 4 (D-2-2) | 10 | 25 | 30 |
| Master's or PhD (D-2-3, D-2-4) | 15 | 30 | 35 |
The hours are weekday hours during the semester. D-2 students who meet the Korean standard have no hour limit on weekends, public holidays and official vacations. D-4 students and anyone below the standard keep the same weekly cap all year. The Korean standard is TOPIK 2 for D-4, TOPIK 3 for associate degrees and bachelor's years 1 to 2, and TOPIK 4 for bachelor's years 3 to 4 and graduate students. KIIP (사회통합프로그램) and King Sejong Institute levels count too, and English-track students can use TOEFL iBT 71, IELTS 5.5 or TEPS 601 instead.
Preferential hours add 5 weekday hours if your school is a certified university (교육국제화역량 인증대학), you had an A average (4.0) last semester, or you have TOPIK 5 or KIIP level 5.
Who can apply
- Eligible statuses: D-2-1 to D-2-4, D-2-6 (exchange) and D-2-7 (work-study) right away; D-4-1 and D-4-7 language trainees and D-2-8 visiting students only after 6 months from the status change date (or entry date for visa holders). D-2-5 research students are not on the list.
- Your university's international student officer must confirm and sign the part-time work confirmation form (외국인 유학생 시간제 취업 확인서).
- Degree students (D-2): average grade of C (2.0) or higher in the previous semester. First-semester students with no transcript yet are exempt from this.
- Language trainees (D-4): average attendance of 90% or more across all completed terms.
Jobs you can't do
- Professional work (E-1 to E-7): Work that belongs to a professional visa needs its own separate permit, for example conversation teaching (E-2) at foreign-language facilities for minors such as English kids' cafes, English camps or language academies.
- Private tutoring (개인과외): Strictly restricted because of the place and the people involved.
- Manufacturing (제조업): Banned unless your Korean is TOPIK 4 level or higher (KIIP 4 or pre-test 81+, or Sejong Intermediate 2).
- Construction (건설업): Banned. Illegal work in construction leads to a departure order on the first offense.
- Seafaring and fishing vessels (선원취업): Banned.
- Adult entertainment and immoral businesses: Work against public morals or social order (선량한 풍속), such as adult entertainment bars (유흥업소). University guides also list karaoke rooms (노래연습장).
- Gig and special-employment work (특수형태근로): Parcel delivery drivers, delivery-app riders, designated (proxy) drivers, insurance sales agents, home-study material teachers (학습지 교사) and door-to-door sales.
- Dispatch, subcontracting or brokered work: Work through a staffing agency, subcontractor or job broker. The contract must be directly with the business on the business registration. Exception: industry-academic internships arranged by universities in regions designated by the Minister of Justice.
- Distant workplaces (원거리 근무): Workplaces too far from your school or home. University guides cite a limit of about 60 minutes travel in regional areas.
- Restricted employers: Businesses or employers barred from visa sponsorship because of past illegal hiring or similar penalties.
How to get the permit
- Get a job offer and sign a contract. Sign a standard labor contract (표준근로계약서) directly with the business owner. It must show the hourly wage, the job duties and the working days and hours.
- Get your university's confirmation. Take your documents to the international student office. The officer fills in and signs the part-time work confirmation form (외국인 유학생 시간제 취업 확인서).
- Apply online or at immigration. Apply through HiKorea e-application (hikorea.go.kr) or by booking a visit to your local immigration office. Many universities advise setting the start date at least 2 weeks after you apply.
- Wait for approval. Do not start work until the permit is approved. You receive a permit sticker or can print the online permit.
- Work only within your permit. Work only at the workplace, in the job, and for the hours and period written on the permit. A new employer needs a new permit before you start there. University guides add that a change of work location within the permit period must be reported within 15 days.
Documents
- Application form (통합신청서)
- Passport
- Alien registration card (외국인등록증)
- Part-time work confirmation form signed by your university (외국인 유학생 시간제 취업 확인서)
- Transcript (D-2) or attendance certificate (D-4); not needed if immigration can check it in the student information system (FIMS)
- Proof of Korean level (TOPIK, KIIP, Sejong) or English level for English-track students, if you claim the standard or preferential hours
- Copy of the business registration certificate (사업자등록증)
- Copy of the standard labor contract (표준근로계약서) with hourly wage, duties and hours
- Part-time work compliance confirmation (시간제 취업 요건 준수 확인서) and a copy of the employer's ID, only if the business registration includes manufacturing or construction
- Fee: 20,000 KRW for the permit to engage in activities outside your status
Working without a permit, or breaking its conditions, can lead to deportation or a departure recommendation, and up to 3 years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million KRW (Immigration Act art. 20, 46, 94). In practice students also face warnings, refusal of future part-time permits and cancellation of student status. Illegal work in construction leads to a departure order regardless of how many times you were caught. Employers who hire students without a permit can also be punished.
Changes in 2026
- February 5, 2026: the Ministry of Justice designated 16 'nurtured specialized technical departments' (육성형 전문기술학과) at junior colleges as a pilot. International students in these departments can work up to 35 hours a week instead of 30.
- October 7, 2026 (announced, not yet in force): the Ministry of Justice plans to simplify part-time work permits so they depend on Korean level and grades, while raising the Korean requirement to KIIP level 3. It also plans to exempt extra documents when the university issues the confirmation form, and to stop visa benefits for departments that run weekend, night or online courses mainly so students can work. Changes the Ministry can make by itself are due to start in the second half of 2026; no start date or final rules have been published yet.
Some websites say the rules were revised on July 9, 2026. We found no Ministry of Justice notice of a change on that date; it is when HiKorea reposted its stay-status manual. The current manual is dated 18 September 2026.
Official sources
- Study in Korea (NIIED, Ministry of Education): Residence and stay, part-time job
- HiKorea: Integrated stay-status manual notice (체류자격별 통합 안내 매뉴얼)
- Easylaw (Ministry of Government Legislation): International students guide, updated March 15, 2026
- Ministry of Government Legislation: International students Q&A, July 2026 (cites the June 23, 2026 manual)
- Ministry of Justice press release, October 7, 2026: international student visa reform
- Ministry of Justice press release, February 2026: 16 nurtured specialized technical departments
Frequently asked questions
Can I start working while my permit is being processed?
No. Wait until the permit is approved. Working before approval counts as illegal work, even if you applied.
Do hours at two jobs count separately?
No. Hours at all your workplaces are added together and must stay within one weekly limit.
Can I teach English on a student visa?
Not with the part-time work permit. Teaching conversation at academies, kids cafes or camps is E-2 work and needs a separate permit, which is hard to get as a student.
I'm writing my thesis and finished coursework. Do the graduate hours apply?
Some guides say thesis-only students are capped at 30 hours a week with no unlimited weekends or vacations. We could not confirm this in an official source, so ask your international office.
What changes are coming?
On October 7, 2026 the Ministry of Justice announced it will simplify the permit around Korean level and grades and raise the Korean requirement to KIIP level 3. No start date has been published yet, and we will update this checker when it takes effect.
Sources: Ministry of Justice stay-status manual (via Study in Korea and Easylaw) · Immigration Act art. 20, 46, 94 · Ministry of Justice press releases (February and October 2026)
Rules effective 2026-09-18, last checked 2026-10-21. We recheck when the Ministry of Justice changes them.