The client requesting a change of workplace was Mr. A, a Vietnamese student who had requested an E7 visa issuance from me last year.
He was granted permission to work as an overseas salesperson under the E7 visa category and worked for about 9 months. Although the employment contract stated a work period of one year at the time of the visa application, he resigned before completing it.
Before resigning, the original workplace had told Mr. A they would provide a letter of consent for transfer. However, for reasons unknown, the original employer, who was aware of the E7 visa's characteristics, did not provide the letter of consent after Mr. A's resignation, and no one from the original workplace could be contacted. The company was not closed or bankrupt, nor were there any wage arrears.
In this situation, Mr. A's options were
1. Wait until the work period stated in the employment contract expires and apply for a change of workplace/permit before the visa's expiry date if he finds a company that meets the E7 visa issuance requirements.
2. If he cannot find a company meeting the overseas salesperson job requirements, and thus no longer has a reason to stay in Korea, he must return to his home country or,
3. If he still needs to stay in Korea and has aspirations, he must change to a D2 student visa through master's enrollment, for example.
Luckily, Mr. A found another company that met the requirements for an E7 visa as an overseas salesperson, and after an interview, he was finally decided to be hired. However, since he had resigned only a few days prior and still had remaining work period under the original employment contract, changing workplaces without the original employer's consent letter was in principle impossible unless the original workplace was closed or there were wage arrears. For E7 workplace changes, the change can only be made within the initially permitted job category. If the new company hires him for a different field, a workplace change is not possible. It would require a qualification change, meaning he would need to obtain an E7 visa again. It's more difficult than changing within the same job category because the applicant's background (education, major, experience) does not change. Additionally, Mr. A had already used up all three chances for extension under the D10 visa, so applying for a D10 visa again was restricted.
Restrictions on changing to a D10 visa
- Those who, within the past three years, have been ordered to leave the country due to a violation of the Immigration Control Act, including voluntary departure, or have been fined a total amount exceeding 2 million won - Those who have stayed for more than 6 months under D10 status within the last year - Those who have applied for a change to D10 status more than three times within the past three years without leaving Korea
This time, let's examine the guidelines for changing workplaces without a transfer consent letter under the E7 visa.
E7 Visa Workplace Change
- To protect employers in good faith and maintain order of stay, if one is fired or quits midway through their own fault, they are excluded from the application if the original employer's consent is not given. - The original workplace's transfer consent letter is waived if the employee has worked until the contract expiration or the mutually agreed date. If there are reasons like the original workplace's closure or wage arrears, substitute documents or a statement of reasons can be provided. Note that for wage arrears, ※ the proof document is the unpaid wages confirmation issued by the competent Ministry of Employment and Labor.
The guidelines mention closure or wage arrears, etc. I focused on this "etc." and interpreted that if there's any other reason equivalent to closure or wage arrears, it could also qualify for application. After extensive consultation with Mr. A, we concluded there was a clear violation of the employment contract. Mr. A was granted an E7 visa as an overseas salesperson. Initially, he worked in sales team 2 but was transferred to the design production team without his consent and even assigned work from another company under the CEO's name, causing stress and leading to his resignation after 9 months. Foreign workers granted an E7 visa - must work at the location stated in the employment contract submitted to immigration (a change in the workplace within the same company may be possible, but changing the nature of work beyond the approved job category, and working for a different company, is not allowed). - The work performed must match the job description specified in the employment contract, i.e., it must align with the job category for which the E7 visa was granted. Violating these conditions can lead to administrative penalties for violating employment laws concerning foreign workers. I focused on gathering evidence of the employment contract violation. Although it was challenging to collect evidence since Mr. A had already resigned, and it was impossible to obtain proof that he was assigned work from another company, we prepared evidence of the involuntary department transfer through extensive consultation. We submitted a workplace change application to immigration without the original employer's consent letter, focusing on collecting evidence of the involuntary department change.
※ Initially, the focus was on collecting evidence for the change from the sales team to the design production team. - There were no official work orders issued by the company, but there were KakaoTalk captures related to work instructions and designs produced by the applicant. - Resignation letters and internal contacts with the department listed. - Extracted data from the website showing a change in the department name during business communications with another company (documents that could infer the date and department name change) were attached.. The immigration officer reviewed the documents and mentioned that it wasn't something they could directly comment but would submit it for approval. They also mentioned they would contact if further information was needed. There was no communication from immigration, and after about 10 days, I visited immigration again. The workplace change notification was approved, and a sticker was attached to the applicant's passport.
Note
※ E7 visas are divided into notification and permission categories for workplace changes. Notification allows starting work immediately, with a report within 15 days, while permission requires approval before starting at the new workplace. Failure to approve the notification means the new workplace cannot commence work. ※ Moreover, changing workplaces with filing a change report/permit means undergoing a process as rigorous as the initial E7 visa application, including submitting a reason for employment and related department's employment recommendation letter, among other documents initially required, plus a transfer consent letter or substitute proof depending on the situation. This is because the E7 visa combines the company + applicant's qualifications to apply for one of the 87 job categories, and changing companies necessitates re-evaluating this combination's suitability for the job category, hence the rigorous review. So, never underestimate the importance of reporting a workplace change, as many cases do not get approved due to insufficient qualifications of the new company or incompatibility with the job category.