D-3 technical trainee invitation and visa issuance confirmation

Procedure

Procedure

1. 01

   1. Confirm the company is eligible to invite trainees — Article 24-2 of the Enforcement Decree designates as technical training companies those that have invested directly abroad, those exporting technology that the Minister of Justice deems to require training, and those exporting plants. The Ministry of Justice directive requires that the overseas joint venture or subsidiary has been established and operating for 3 months, that technology import or partnership contracts are worth at least 100,000 US dollars, and that plants are worth at least 500,000 US dollars on an FOB basis. A company whose direct investment is under 100,000 US dollars needs the Minister of Justice's approval for its first invitation.

2. 02

   2. Check the trainee selection criteria — Trainees must be production staff of the subsidiary or partner company, aged 18 to 40, with at least 3 months of service at the subsidiary. They need TOPIK level 2 or higher or completion of King Sejong Institute Beginner 2 or higher, unless the company submits a Korean language education pledge to station at least 1 interpreter per 100 trainees at all times and provide at least 5 hours of Korean classes per month. People sentenced to imprisonment without labor or heavier, those who left Korea under a departure order or deportation order, and those who stayed illegally for 6 months or more cannot be recruited.

3. 03

   3. Set the headcount and the training plan — The number of trainees is limited to 8% of regular Korean employees, excluding temporary staff and technical trainees, up to 200 people, calculated per business registration when there are multiple sites. Training in principle cannot exceed 6 months from entry, and practical training cannot exceed 70% of total training hours. The training plan should describe the theory and practice hours, training processes, accommodation and Korean language education exactly as they will be run.

4. 04

   4. Apply for the visa issuance certificate — The head of the inviting company files the application for a certificate of visa eligibility with the training plan, letter of guarantee, proof that the company is eligible, and proof of its number of regular Korean employees at the immigration office with jurisdiction over the company's address. The office examines whether the trainees would be used as simple labor, the training and accommodation facilities, whether the Korean company and the subsidiary are in the same industry and operating normally, and factory registration. If approved, a D-3 certificate with a stay of up to 6 months is issued, and the trainee obtains the visa at a Korean diplomatic mission.

5. 05

   5. Post-entry management and extension — Within 1 month of entry the company provides at least 16 hours of in-house education covering Korean culture and immigration law and keeps a training log, and at alien registration it submits proof of a surety insurance against unpaid training allowances, industrial accident compensation insurance, and a Korean health check-up. If further training is needed, the period can be extended up to 2 years from entry by submitting a statement of reasons for extension signed by the head of the company and a training performance evaluation. If a reportable event such as a trainee leaving occurs, the company reports it to the immigration office within 15 days.

Filing route

Filing route

Deadlines & processing notes

Deadlines & processing notes

Fees & official charges

Fees & official charges

Included in the basic fee — Initial document review, required-document guidance, basic form preparation, one filing support and responses to up to two supplement requests.

Conditional success fee — For this service, any conditional success fee may be separately agreed within the lawful service scope and stated in a written engagement agreement. No outcome is guaranteed.

Displayed amounts are starting estimates, not statutory or standard rates. The final fee is confirmed after consultation and document review in the engagement agreement. Government fees and actual expenses may change.

Basic documents

Basic documents

If practical training exceeds 70% of total training hours or trainees are trained in an industry different from the subsidiary's, extensions are refused, and a violation of the practical training ratio bars the company from inviting trainees for 1 year from the date it is found. Forcibly keeping trainees' passports or money, making trainees pay their airfare, or failing to pay 150% of base pay for practical training beyond 8 hours a day or at night are grounds for classification as a poorly managing company.