Professor
교수 — Long-term employment (teaching/research) status
At a glance
Foreign nationals who teach or conduct research at higher-education institutions (colleges, universities and equivalent) or at accredited research institutions in Korea.
Up to 5 years per period of stay (maximum length of stay per grant under the Enforcement Rules of the Immigration Act).
Employment is limited to the qualifying teaching/research activity at the sponsoring institution stated in the status.
Fee: Certificate of Visa Issuance (사증발급인정서): no fee for issuance of the certificate itself; single-entry visa issued abroad approx. US$60 equivalent (set by consulate). Domestic: extension of stay (체류기간 연장) 60,000 KRW; alien registration 30,000 KRW. Change of status of stay 130,000 KRW. (Fees are set by the Enforcement Rules and may change — verify current amounts on HiKorea.) (unverified exact current amounts) · Time: Certificate of Visa Issuance typically takes a few weeks (institution-dependent);…
Where this fits in your journey
Before arrival
Get admitted, prepare documents, apply.
During study
ARC, extensions, permits while in Korea.
After graduation
Job-seeking and work visas.
Settlement
Long-term residence and PR.
Who can apply
- ✓Foreign nationals who teach or conduct research at higher-education institutions (colleges, universities and equivalent) or at accredited research institutions in Korea.
- ✓Applicants must meet the faculty qualification standards of assistant professor or higher under the ‘Regulations on Qualification Standards for University Faculty’ (대학교원 자격기준 등에 관한 규정), which are generally satisfied by a relevant PhD, or a Master’s degree combined with sufficient teaching/research career.
- ✓Typically full-time faculty (professor, associate professor, assistant professor) invited/appointed by an institution eligible under the Higher Education Act.
- ✓Education career and research career may be counted interchangeably; for Master’s-degree holders, research career may be recognized as research achievement.
Documents you'll need
- Visa issuance application form (통합신청서) with one color photo (3.5cm x 4.5cm, taken within 6 months)
- passport and copy
- for a visa issuance certificate application, the confirmation of visa issuance certificate (사증발급인정서)
- original of highest degree certificate (diploma)
- original career/employment certificate meeting immigration qualification standards
- employment/appointment contract or letter of appointment from the Korean institution
- business registration certificate of the employing institution
- (documents may vary by office and by whether applying abroad at an embassy or in Korea for a certificate — confirm current list on HiKorea for the specific institution)
How to apply
- Overseas embassy visa (사증) or domestic change-of-status; E-1 commonly uses a Certificate for Confirmation of Visa Issuance (사증발급인정서) filed in Korea by the employing university/institution.
- The Korean host institution usually applies in Korea for a Certificate of Visa Issuance (사증발급인정서) on behalf of the foreign professor; once issued, the applicant applies for the actual E-1 visa at a Korean embassy/consulate abroad, or (if already in Korea on another status) applies for a change of status of stay.
- E-1 is one of the categories eligible for the visa issuance certificate route.
Stay & extension
Up to 5 years per period of stay (maximum length of stay per grant under the Enforcement Rules of the Immigration Act). Actual period granted is commonly tied to the appointment/contract term.
Extension of stay (체류기간 연장허가) must be applied for at the immigration office before the current period expires, usually with an updated appointment/employment certificate and proof of continued qualifying activity. Each extension is granted within the 5-year statutory upper limit for E-1.
Working on this visa
Employment is limited to the qualifying teaching/research activity at the sponsoring institution stated in the status. Additional or concurrent work outside that scope requires prior permission (expansion of activity scope, 활동범위 확대, or activity-outside-status permit, 체류자격외 활동허가).
Reciprocal cross-activity between E-1 (Professor) and E-3 (Research) is permitted for qualifying advanced science and technology personnel at higher-education institutions and government/national/public/corporate research institutes; lecturing at other universities may be allowed under activity-outside-status rules.
Requirements in detail
GNI-linked wage floor for professional E-visas; 2024 per-capita GNI ₩49,955,000 applied 2025-04-01~2026-03-31. Exact E-1 multiplier per MOJ manual (unverified).
No separate ministry endorsement, but employer must be an accredited higher-education institution (universities/junior colleges under the Higher Education Act or equivalent research institutions, 고등교육법상 대학/전문대학·준하는 연구기관) and applicant must meet the university faculty qualification standards (대학교원 자격기준) of assistant professor or above (조교수 이상).
Relevant PhD, or master’s degree plus teaching/research career meeting assistant-professor-or-higher qualification standards; education and research careers count interchangeably.
Sub-types
E-1 covers university/college-level teaching and research faculty. Closely related science/research statuses: E-3 (Research), which covers researchers at natural-science/high-tech research institutes; E-1 and E-3 have reciprocal activity provisions for qualifying advanced S&T personnel.
Language-teaching roles fall under E-2, not E-1.
Spouse and unmarried minor children accompany on F-3 (동반).
Applies. Since 2025-01-10 registered foreigners aged 14+ with their own smartphone can issue a mobile alien registration card (외국인등록증) (same legal effect as the physical card); E-1 holders eligible after alien registration.
2025–2026 policy updates
- Top-Tier (톱티어) visa expansion: On 2026-05-31 the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) announced expansion of the Top-Tier visa program — previously limited to employees of companies in advanced-industry sectors — to include professors and researchers in science and technology fields, effective June 2026.
- Qualifying science-and-technology professors/researchers who meet at least one quantitative criterion (award, publication, commercialization, or career) — or who pass a qualitative evaluation by MOJ/MSIT — can be recommended by MSIT and, upon MOJ review, receive an unrestricted-employment F-2 residence visa and an immigration priority card, with the residence period required for F-5 permanent residence shortened from an average of 5 years to 3 years.
- MSIT target: attract 2,000 top overseas talents by 2030 (about 600 in 2026).
- (Related 2026 F-2 point-system and re-entry-permit changes reported in news but not verified here — see the key notes.)
Common mistakes
- Assuming any teaching job qualifies — E-1 is only for higher-education (college-level or above) faculty meeting assistant-professor-or-higher qualification standards; language instructors need E-2.
- Working or lecturing beyond the sponsoring institution without prior activity-outside-status permission.
- Letting the period of stay expire before applying for extension.
- Confusing E-1 with E-3 (Research).
Where this leads
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