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Last verified: October 6, 2026 · Current Immigration Control Act, Enforcement Decree, Ministry of Justice 2026 E-7 wage standards and official immigration information checked.
An E-7 holder can change employers, but the new company and job still have to fit the immigration permission behind the E-7.
Before you resign, check whether the new occupation still fits your E-7 category, whether the new employer qualifies, whether the salary meets the current standard and whether your case requires advance permission or qualifies for post-change reporting. Set the first day at the new workplace only after that sequence is clear.
1. Is the new job still an occupation permitted under my E-7 category?
2. Do my degree, experience or professional qualifications still match it?
3. Does the new employer meet the immigration requirements?
4. Does the salary meet the current rule for this occupation?
5. Does my case require advance permission, or do I qualify for post-change reporting?
If you are still at the offer stage, read Job Offer in Korea: Salary, Bonus, Probation & Visa Sponsorship before deciding when to resign.
1. The new company does not inherit your old E-7 approval
Your current E-7 permission was not issued for the words “professional job” in the abstract. Immigration looked at a particular combination of your qualifications, the permitted occupation, the employer and the employment conditions.
Moving to another company can therefore trigger a new review of both the job and the employer. A new employer saying “we sponsor E-7 visas” is useful information, but it does not by itself show that your individual move is approved.
The safest approach is to treat the new job as a fresh immigration compatibility check, not as an automatic transfer of the old approval.
If you are unsure whether the new work is permitted under your current status at all, start with Can You Work on Your Visa in Korea? What to Check Before Accepting a Job .
2. Check the occupation before comparing salary
A job title that sounds similar in English does not guarantee that immigration will treat the duties as the same E-7 occupation.
Two companies may both advertise a role as “manager,” “engineer” or “specialist” while assigning very different work. Immigration looks beyond a convenient English title when the permitted occupation has its own qualification and duty requirements.
If the new duties no longer fit the occupation behind your current E-7 permission, a simple workplace change may not be enough. The case can require a different occupation code, a different E-7 route or another status altogether.
Compare the duties, not just the Korean or English position title. A salary negotiation is premature if the occupation itself does not fit.
3. Recheck the 2026 salary requirement
The Ministry of Justice publishes E-7 wage standards each year. For the general 2026 standards applied from February, the main category thresholds are:
| E-7 category | 2026 general threshold |
|---|---|
| E-7-1 | KRW 31.12 million per year or more |
| E-7-2 | KRW 25.89 million per year or more |
| E-7-3 | KRW 25.89 million per year or more |
| E-7-4 | KRW 26.00 million per year or more |
Those figures are the general category standards, not a promise that every occupation under the category uses only that number.
Some occupations or programs have separate wage rules or additional conditions. Check the exact occupation attached to your case before accepting a salary simply because it sits above the broad E-7 category figure.
Immigration and the employment contract may treat guaranteed salary, allowances and variable compensation differently. Make sure the figure being relied on is one that actually satisfies the applicable immigration standard.
4. Advance permission is the rule; post-change reporting is an exception
Article 21 of the Immigration Control Act sets the general rule for changing or adding a workplace within an existing status of stay: obtain permission in advance.
The same article creates an exception for designated people with professional knowledge, skills or functions. When the statutory and administrative conditions for that exception are satisfied, the workplace change is reported within 15 days after the change.
The Enforcement Decree includes holders from E-1 through E-7 among the categories that can fall within this reporting system when they also satisfy the requirements announced by the Ministry of Justice.
The reporting route depends on the occupation and the conditions applicable to the individual case. If your case remains subject to advance permission, obtain that permission before beginning work for the new employer.
For an important move, confirm the current procedure through HiKorea or the immigration contact center rather than deciding from the visa label alone.
5. Your old employer's report does not complete your workplace change
There is another 15-day rule that can cause confusion. An employer also has reporting obligations when a foreign employee resigns, is dismissed or certain important employment details change.
That employer-side report is not the same thing as your own workplace-change permission or report under Article 21.
In other words, your old company telling immigration that you left does not automatically authorize you to begin working for the new company.
Old employer: reports the employment change when legally required.
You: complete the permission or reporting procedure required for the new workplace.
This distinction matters most when a worker assumes that HR has “handled immigration” without checking exactly what was filed.
6. Prepare the new employer's evidence before the resignation date
A workplace-change case can depend heavily on documents supplied by the new employer. Do not wait until after the old job has ended to discover that the new HR team is still trying to identify what immigration needs.
Depending on the occupation and case, documents can include:
- the new employment contract;
- business-registration or corporate documents;
- a detailed job description;
- degree, career or professional-qualification evidence;
- an employment recommendation or proof of employment need where required;
- documents specific to the E-7 occupation.
Ask the new HR team what it has already prepared and which items it expects from you. If the answer is vague, resolve that before giving up the old position.
The new company's confidence that “we have hired foreigners before” is helpful, but it is not a substitute for a complete file for your occupation.
7. Set the new start date after you know which immigration route applies
The offer letter may contain a preferred first working day. That date still has to fit the immigration procedure.
New offer → documents → immigration application → approval → start at the new workplace
If your case qualifies for post-change reporting:Confirm eligibility → change workplace → submit the required report within the statutory period
Do not let payroll convenience decide the legal sequence. A company may want you on Monday because its onboarding cycle begins on Monday; that does not change the immigration requirement.
Put the immigration condition in writing with HR if necessary, especially when the proposed resignation date and first day at the new company are close together.
8. Keep proof from both employers
A company change creates a small chain of documents. Keep that chain intact even after the new job has started.
- old employment contract;
- resignation letter, certificate or other end-of-employment record;
- new offer;
- signed new employment contract;
- immigration application or workplace-change report receipt;
- approval or accepted-report evidence;
- updated residence or immigration records when issued.
Those documents can matter again at an extension, another workplace change or a later residence-status application.
Store copies outside both employers' internal email systems. Access to a corporate inbox can disappear on the day employment ends.
9. Resignation itself has employment-law consequences too
Immigration permission answers whether you may work at the new workplace. It does not settle your final salary, unused leave, severance, return of company property or other employment issues with the old employer.
For the employment side, keep your contract and payroll records and review Working in Korea for Foreigners: Contracts, Pay & Labor Rights .
Immigration and labor law can affect the same resignation, but they are not the same system. Finishing one does not automatically finish the other.
10. E-9 workplace changes use a different system
Do not use this article as an E-9 workplace-change guide.
E-9 workers are tied to the Employment Permit System, which has its own grounds, procedures and limits for changing workplaces.
The fact that both visas involve a Korean employer does not make their workplace-change rules interchangeable.
Video: E-7 work visa rules in simple English
This 2026 English-language explainer gives an accessible overview of E-7 categories, qualifications, sponsorship and salary standards. Use it for orientation. The workplace-change rules in this article are checked separately against current Korean law and Ministry of Justice sources.
Before you resign
1. Confirm the exact E-7 occupation behind the new job.
2. Check your qualifications against that occupation.
3. Confirm that the new employer can support the case.
4. Check the applicable 2026 salary standard.
5. Determine whether you need advance permission or qualify for reporting.
6. Make sure the new employer's documents are ready.
7. Only then lock the resignation date and new first working day.
The risky order is resignation first, immigration questions second. The safer order is to understand the new job's immigration route while you still have time to change the offer, the start date or the move itself.
Official sources checked
Evidence note: Workplace-change law and 2026 E-7 general wage requirements were rechecked on October 6, 2026. Occupation-specific rules and individual eligibility can differ, so HiKorea or the responsible immigration office should be used for the final case-specific procedure.
- National Law Information Center — Immigration Control Act, Article 21
- National Law Information Center — Enforcement Decree, Article 26-2
- National Law Information Center — Employer Reporting Duties, Article 19
- Ministry of Justice — 2026 E-7 Wage Requirement Standards
- HiKorea
- Study in Korea — Foreign Employment System
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