Somewhere along the way (beginning 'round about the time I published this article, I guess…), I started getting questions about visas in Korea. Having sat down with the official from Korea Immigration for an hour or so earlier this year, I realize this topic isn't as complicated as it seems. But the reason it seems complicated is because of the rather passive-aggressive approach immigration takes to sharing the information. There seems to be a clear attitude that if a foreigner wants to stay in Korea, it's up to that person to figure it out.
At any rate, I got this question from a KBC member recently:
Dear Steve, Since i currently have a problem with getting an appropiate visa for an intern i hope you can help me or might know what to do. I've been an exchange student at SNU and through a professor I managed to get an internship at GS Energy starting in January. I wanted to go for the working holiday visa and the ambassador in Denmark said it should not be a problem when I applied. However as of now it seems like it is not good enough. What visa would you suggest I go for? The internship is paid. Any help is appreciated.
Here's what I replied:
There isn't an "intern visa" in Korea. To do it right, you'll need to get your employer to sponsor you on a regular employee visa, probably an E-7. Here's an article with details. Even if it's an unpaid internship, I don't believe you'd be able to legally work at it under a tourist visa. But that doesn't mean you can't do it….
