Occupation and Income Report for Foreigners

Overview

Under the Enforcement Rule of the Immigration Act, a foreigner holding a status that permits work must report his or her occupation and annual income to the competent Immigration Office when registering and when applying for various stay permits. This applies in common across the status-specific procedures.

What often causes confusion is that the report is split into two places. The occupation goes on the Foreigner Occupation Report Form, while annual income goes in the “Annual Income Amount” field of the integrated application form. F-4 holders do not enter annual income, and because the data is linked with the National Tax Service, an income certificate is not required.

At a Glance

Scope of Activity

• The occupation report submitted at alien registration and various stay permit applications
• How to fill in the annual income field of the integrated application form, and the F-4 exception
• Reporting when the occupation changes

Who Qualifies

• Persons staying on D-7, D-8 or D-9
• Persons staying on work statuses from E-1 (Professor) to E-10 (Vessel Crew)
• Persons staying on F-2 or F-6
• F-4 and H-2 holders who want to know how to fill in the occupation report
• Those preparing the report ahead of an extension of stay or a change of workplace

Required Documents

• Foreigner Occupation Report Form: name, date of birth, sex, nationality and Alien Registration No. (if any)
• In the occupation field, write your current occupation in the parentheses and tick the matching box in the occupation list below (use the “No occupation” box if you have none)
• “Annual Income Amount” field of the integrated application form: enter in units of 10,000 won (not required for F-4)
• Date of application, and the applicant's signature or seal (the proxy's signature or seal if filed by proxy)
• Income certificate: omitted because data is linked with the National Tax Service
• Region-specific overseas Korean (F-4-R): occupation only

Application Process

1. Check eligibility — confirm your current status, career, degree and contract type match the requirements.
2. Prepare documents — foreign public documents need a translator's certification plus an apostille (or consular confirmation for non-member states).
3. Book a visit — reserve a slot at your Immigration Office via HiKorea (www.hikorea.go.kr), or file online where e-Application is available.
4. File and pay — submit the Integrated Application Form (Form No. 34) and pay the screening fee.
5. Review — respond to any request for supplementary documents within the deadline.
6. Result — on approval, the period of stay and status are granted; reissue your ARC if required.

Key Points

• The occupation report and the annual income report use different forms. Occupation goes on the Foreigner Occupation Report Form, and annual income in the “Annual Income Amount” field of the integrated application form. The guidance for region-specific overseas Koreans (F-4-R) also uses the phrase “occupation and annual income report (check occupation only)”, so if the form name at the counter looks different, confirm at filing that it is the same content.
• The report is due at alien registration, when applying for a change of status, permission for activities outside the status, permission or notification for change or addition of workplace, grant of status, or extension of stay, and whenever the occupation changes.
• The statuses listed as subject to the report are D-7, D-8, D-9, E-1 to E-10, F-2, F-4, F-6 and H-2. For how a status not on the list is treated, confirm with the competent Immigration Office.
• The school-enrollment report for foreign residents aged 6 to 18 is a separate duty, entered in the “School enrollment” field of the integrated application form. Do not confuse it with the occupation report.
• Documents issued in Korea must normally be dated within 3 months unless another validity period applies.
• Documents already on file in your alien registration record need not be resubmitted.
• Health certificates, drug test results and pre-employment medical reports must be submitted sealed by the issuing hospital (do not open).
• You must be in Korea when applying; leaving the country after filing may result in refusal.
• Screening fees are non-refundable once the application is accepted.
• The head of the Immigration Office may add or waive documents where necessary for review.

Frequently Asked Questions

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