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Part-time work for international students in Korea (D-2 and D-4): weekly hours by Korean level, permission steps and penalties
Numbers checked against the official source on 2026-10-19
International students on a D-2 (study) or D-4 (language training) status need permission from the immigration office before taking a part-time job. The government's Study in Korea site prints an hours table that depends on your course and your Korean level: on the O rows the weekday figure is 25 hours for a bachelor's student (30 in the last column) and 30 hours for a master's or doctoral student (35 in the last column). Weekends and school vacations can be unlimited. Language-training students can apply only after six months. Working without permission is punished under the Immigration Act.
Read on 2026-10-19 from two Study in Korea pages (run by the Korean government; one cites HiKorea as its source, the other cites the Ministry of Government Legislation's Easy Law site). Neither page prints a revision date. The Immigration Act text used here is shown as in force 2026-10-02.
Who can apply
- D-2 students with detailed status D-2-1 to D-2-4, D-2-6 or D-2-7.
- Language-training (D-4-1, D-4-7) and visiting-student (D-2-8) status: only once 6 months have passed from the date the status was changed (or from the entry date if you hold a visa).
- You must hold a certain level of Korean and have it confirmed by your university's international student officer.
- Students who stayed on after the normal course length (2-year associate or 4-year bachelor) without meeting graduation requirements, under an exceptional stay permit, are listed as excluded from permission.
Weekly hours table
This is the table as the Study in Korea page prints it. Each row has up to three hour figures: a "weekday" figure, a "weekend and vacation" figure (the two are merged into one cell on the X rows and on the language-training O row), and a last column headed "accredited university, high grades, excellent Korean (weekday)". Each course has two rows marked with an X icon and an O icon. The page does not say in words what the icons mean, so we show them exactly as printed instead of guessing. Ask your school's international office which row applies to you.
| Course | Year | Korean standard (any one of: TOPIK / KIIP / Sejong Institute) | Start | Icon | Weekday | Weekend / vacation | Last column (accredited school, high grades, excellent Korean; weekday) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Language training | any | TOPIK level 2; or KIIP stage 2 completed or pre-test 41 points or more; or Sejong Institute intermediate 1 (see note below) | after 6 months | X | 10 hours | 10 hours | |
| O | 20 hours | 25 hours | |||||
| Associate degree | any | TOPIK level 3; or KIIP stage 3 or pre-test 61 points or more; or Sejong Institute intermediate 1 | immediately | X | 10 hours | 10 hours | |
| O | 25 hours | no limit | 30 hours | ||||
| Bachelor | 1-2 | TOPIK level 3; or KIIP stage 3 or pre-test 61 points or more; or Sejong Institute intermediate 1 | immediately | X | 10 hours | 10 hours | |
| O | 25 hours | no limit | 30 hours | ||||
| Bachelor | 3-4 | TOPIK level 4; or KIIP stage 4 or pre-test 81 points or more; or Sejong Institute intermediate 2 | immediately | X | 10 hours | 10 hours | |
| O | 25 hours | no limit | 30 hours | ||||
| Master / doctoral | any | TOPIK level 4; or KIIP stage 4 or pre-test 81 points or more; or Sejong Institute intermediate 2 | immediately | X | 15 hours | 10 hours on Page A; 15 hours on Page B (see below) | |
| O | 30 hours | no limit | 35 hours | ||||
The same Study in Korea site summarises the table in words: weekday part-time work is limited to 30 hours for undergraduates and 35 hours for graduate students, weekends and vacations run from 10 hours up to no limit, and students at accredited universities or with high grades can get extra hours within a 10-35 hour range. That summary matches the largest figures in the last column (30 and 35).
"KIIP" is the Korea Immigration and Integration Program (사회통합프로그램). For the TOPIK test itself, see TOPIK fees and 2026 test dates.
Permission steps
- Sign an employment contract. The page asks for a standard labour contract that states the hourly wage.
- Get the part-time work confirmation form completed. It is a prescribed form filled in by the university's international student officer.
- Apply to the immigration office online or in person, with the attachments below.
- Receive the decision. If granted, a permission sticker is attached or an online permit is printed.
Documents listed: passport, alien registration card and application form; the foreign student part-time work confirmation form; a grade or attendance certificate (replaced if the school's FIMS record can be checked); proof of Korean ability where it applies; a copy of the employer's business registration; the standard labour contract; and, where it applies, a "requirements compliance confirmation" form.
Fee: Article 72 of the Immigration Act Enforcement Rule sets KRW 120,000 for permission for activities outside your status, but KRW 20,000 where the Minister of Justice recognises cases such as part-time work for D-2 or D-4 holders. See Korea immigration fees for the full schedule.
What kind of work is allowed
- The page's basic principle: part-time activity that students normally do, such as simple labour ("단순 노무 등").
- The other Study in Korea page gives examples: restaurant assistant, general office assistant, tourist guide assistant and duty-free shop sales assistant.
- Private tutoring ("개인과외 교습") is "strictly restricted" because of the place and the people involved.
- One-off honoraria, prize money or other small payments tied to daily life, within what does not undermine your student status, do not need separate permission.
If you work without permission
The page says that working without permission, or breaking the conditions of a permission, is punished "according to law" (법에 따라 처벌), and that for illegal work in construction the person receives a departure order regardless of how many times they were caught (entry restriction suspended).
The law behind this: Article 20 of the Immigration Act requires prior permission from the Minister of Justice for an activity of another status of stay. Article 94, item 12 sets imprisonment of up to 3 years or a fine of up to KRW 30,000,000 for doing such activity without permission. Whether and how that item is applied to a given student is up to the authorities.
Where the pages differ or are unclear
| Item | Page A (Employment System, tab part-time) | Page B (Residence and Stay, tab part-time job) | What we show |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sejong Institute level, language-training row | intermediate 1 ("중급 1 이상 이수") | beginner 2 ("초급2 이상 이수") | We print Page A's wording and flag the difference. Confirm with your school. |
| Bachelor years 1-2 Korean standard | TOPIK 3 / KIIP 3 / Sejong intermediate 1 | The row prints no standard of its own (merged cell above) | We show the standard from Page A. |
| Master / doctoral, X row, last column | 10 hours ("10시간") | 15 hours ("15 시간") | Both pages print 15 hours in the weekday and weekend cells. We show both figures in the table and flag it; ask your school. |
| A separate 30-hour sentence | Page A has a line reading "주당 30시간에 한하며, 휴무일, 공휴일, 방학기간 중 무제한 허용 규정은 적용이 배제됩니다" directly after the line about the excluded exceptional-stay group. | Its scope is not clear on the page. It reads as a 30-hour weekly cap with no unlimited holiday/vacation work for the group named just before it. Ask the immigration office. | |
Neither page carries a revision date. The permission rules are administrative guidance of the Ministry of Justice and may change; the Study in Korea pages point to HiKorea (hikorea.go.kr) and the visa portal (visa.go.kr) for details. For help lines including the Immigration Contact Center, see emergency and help numbers.
Related: Minimum wage in Korea 2026 and Alien registration card. This is a summary, not legal advice: confirm with your school's international office and the immigration office before you start work.
Official sources
- Study in Korea (Government) — Employment System for Foreigners, part-time tab — hours table by course and Korean level, summary of 30 / 35 hours, who may apply; no revision date printed (read on 2026-10-19) (checked 2026-10-19)
- Study in Korea (Government) — Residence and Stay, part-time job tab — four permission steps, documents, eligible statuses, treatment of unpermitted work; cites HiKorea; no revision date printed (read on 2026-10-19) (checked 2026-10-19)
- National Law Information Center — Immigration Act, Article 20 — activities outside your status need prior permission; page header: in force 2026-10-02 (checked 2026-10-19)
- National Law Information Center — Immigration Act, Article 94 — penalty: up to 3 years in prison or KRW 30,000,000 (item 12) (checked 2026-10-19)
- National Law Information Center — Immigration Act Enforcement Rule, Article 72 — fee KRW 120,000 for activities outside status, KRW 20,000 for D-2/D-4 part-time work (checked 2026-10-19)
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