Recently, I received an inquiry about changing from an E-7 visa to an F-2-7 visa.
The applicant had enough points to apply for the F-2-7 visa, and the combination of the applicant + the hiring company also met the issuance requirements for the E-7 visa, so I told them it was possible and took on the case.
※ The F-2-7 points-based skilled visa is not just about meeting the points requirement.
When applying for a change of status from E7, D2, D10 to F-2-7, not only must you meet the score requirement of 80 points or more, but the combination of the company where the applicant will work or is currently working and the applicant must meet the issuance requirements for an E-7 visa for a chosen occupation. In other words, it can be easier to understand if you think that the requirements for E7 are included within F-2-7.
However, while driving home after work, it suddenly occurred to me that the requirements for F5 (permanent resident) might also be sufficiently met, and after returning home, I reviewed the consultation diary to re-evaluate the suitability for the F5 permanent residency.
The result was that the requirements for F5 permanent residency application were also sufficient.
I called the client and suggested that since they qualified for permanent residency, why not apply for that instead of the F-2-7 visa. The client, unaware of this, gratefully agreed to apply for permanent residency.
The typical path we usually think of for foreign students to reach F5 permanent residency status starts with a D4 visa for language study (D-4) → D-2 → (D-10) → E-7 → (F-2-7) → F-5. Therefore, it's common to think that it's natural to apply for a change to the F-2-7 points-based skilled visa from an E7 visa.
※ F-5-1 (general permanent residency) applied under the requirement of more than 5 years of domestic stay is not often applicable to foreign students who graduated from a domestic university and are working at a company under an E7 visa. This is because meeting the annual income requirement of more than twice the GNI (85 million won or more) is difficult.
The permanent residency applied for by the applicant this time was the F-5-10 visa, which is available for those with a bachelor's or master's degree in science and engineering (including graduates from domestic universities) and those with a bachelor's degree or higher in advanced technology fields (irrespective of domestic or overseas universities) who meet the GNI times 1 requirement.
First, let's look at the requirements.
F5 Permanent Residency Application Requirements
(Decent conduct requirement, Livelihood maintenance requirement, Basic aptitude requirement)
Firstly, the so-called three major requirements for permanent residency: decent conduct requirement, livelihood maintenance requirement, and basic aptitude requirement.
※ Not all permanent residency qualifications apply to everyone. Whether these requirements apply must be checked according to individual guidelines for each type of permanent residency.
1. Decent Conduct Requirement
- Simply put, the good conduct requirement means there must be no domestic or foreign criminal records or violations of the Immigration Control Law. Due to the extensive content, we will omit the criteria for examining foreign crimes.
(1) Domestic Crime Examination Criteria - Permanent residency application is not possible if any of the following criteria are met
① Persons sentenced for specific severe crimes as defined in Article 2 of the "Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Crimes"
② Persons who have been sentenced to imprisonment or more for violating the Immigration Control Act or other laws and 5 years have not passed since the execution of the sentence was completed or exempted
③ Persons who have received a suspended sentence of imprisonment or more for violating the Immigration Control Act or other laws and 5 years have not passed since the judgment became final
④ Persons who have been fined for violating the Immigration Control Act or other laws and 3 years have not passed since the fine was paid
- For unpaid fines leading to labor detention, etc., the end of detention is considered the day of fine payment
- The same treatment applies to those obligated to pay forfeitures
⑤ Persons who have violated Article 7, Paragraph 1, or Paragraph 4 of the Immigration Control Act, or Article 12, Paragraph 1, or Paragraph 2, and 5 years have not passed
⑥ Persons who have violated the Immigration Control Act three or more times in the last 5 years. In this case, persons who have received a penalty fine are excluded
⑦ Persons who have been ordered to leave the country under Article 59, Paragraph 2, of the Immigration Control Act and 7 years have not passed since departure or have been ordered to leave under Article 68 and 5 years have not passed
⑧ Persons who have been fined 5 million won or more for violating the Immigration Control Act in the last 3 years or whose total amount of fines is 7 million won or more
⑨ Persons who are subject to forced departure under Article 46, Paragraph 1, of the Immigration Control Act due to violating domestic laws, but were granted stay permission considering humanitarian reasons, and 5 years have not passed since the decision date
※ Applicants with a history of violating domestic laws must also complete law-abiding citizen education.
※ Foreign crimes are verified through a criminal record certificate from abroad. However, if the applicant is applying as a high-value investor (F-5-5), an advanced field doctorate (F-5-9), a general field doctorate (F-5-15), a specific skill owner (F-5-11), or a special merit (F-5-12), the submission of a criminal record certificate from abroad can be waived.
<Exemptions from Law-abiding Citizen Education>
1) Those who have previously completed "Law-abiding Citizen Education" and have no additional violations of the law
2) Those meeting the following criteria
- Those who have been charged with a violation of the law once or less, have been subjected to a non-prosecution decision or fined 1 million won or less (including exemptions from charges or fines), and 10 years have passed since the conclusion of the case (date of non-prosecution decision, fine payment day)
2. Livelihood Maintenance Requirement (Income Requirement)
- The income requirement is assessed based on the Proof of Income Amount for the previous year, and it is possible to combine the income of cohabitating family members. Depending on the situation, assets held can be substituted for income.
- Combining income and assets for calculation is not possible, and the applicant's own income or assets must account for more than 50% of the total, except in cases where the applicant is a minor child or is raising a minor child.
- The livelihood maintenance requirement applies differently according to each specific permanent residency qualification being applied for. That is, depending on the specific permanent residency being applied for, it must be checked if ① the income requirement is waived, ② it is possible to apply choosing either income or assets, ③ the income requirement is at least GNI times 1, or GNI times 2, ④ and if assets are allowed, whether the requirement is the average net assets from the previous year times 1 or 1.5, etc.
※ For qualifications F-5-10, F-5-9, F-5-15, it is possible to apply with an income requirement of at least GNI times 1.
※ For F-5-10, combining income with cohabitating family members is not allowed, the applicant's income must be at least GNI times 1, and it is not possible to substitute the income requirement with assets.
3. Basic Aptitude Requirement
- The basic aptitude requirement refers to the essential qualities as a Korean, such as Korean language proficiency and understanding of Korean customs and traditions. For permanent residency applications, completing level 5 of the Social Integration Program or scoring 60 or more in the comprehensive evaluation for permanent residency or naturalization is recognized as fulfilling the basic aptitude requirement.
※ Not all permanent residency qualifications require the fulfillment of the basic aptitude requirement. The qualifications subject to basic aptitude assessment are as follows
<Qualifications Subject to Basic Aptitude Assessment>
- General permanent residents (F-5-1) and their spouses (F-5-4)
- Points-based permanent residents (F-5-16) and their spouses (F-5-18)
- Holders of bachelor’s/master’s degrees and professional certifications (F-5-10)
Holders of Bachelor’s/Master’s Degrees and Certifications (F-5-10)
Eligible Individuals
- Individuals with a bachelor's degree or higher in fields designated by the Minister of Justice, who have resided in Korea for at least 3 years and, at the time of applying for F-5 status, are employed by a domestic company earning a salary set by the Minister of Justice or higher.
- Individuals with technical certifications designated by the Minister of Justice, who have resided in Korea for at least 3 years and, at the time of applying for F-5 status, are employed by a domestic company earning a salary set by the Minister of Justice or higher.
Decent Conduct Requirement, Basic Aptitude Requirement, Livelihood Maintenance Requirement
1. Decent Conduct Requirement (Submission of a criminal record check from overseas required)
2. Basic Aptitude Requirement (Completion of level 5 of the Social Integration Program or scoring 60 or more in the comprehensive evaluation for permanent residency or naturalization)
3. Livelihood Maintenance Requirement (Only income is applicable, the previous year's income amount must be at least 1 times the GNI)
Individual Requirements for Holders of Bachelor’s/Master’s Degrees and Certifications (F-5-10)
※ All of the following 1, 2, 3 requirements must be met
1. Possession of at least one of the following degrees or technical certifications
① Bachelor’s degree or higher in advanced technology fields (irrespective of whether the degree is from a domestic or overseas university)
② Bachelor’s degree or higher in engineering obtained from a domestic university (including non-advanced technology fields)
③ Master’s degree or higher in engineering or advanced technology fields obtained from a domestic university (including non-advanced technology fields)
④ Professional engineer certification or equivalent issued by the Human Resources Development Service of Korea
* Qualifications recognized by the Government of the Republic of Korea under Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRA)
※ Eight advanced technology fields: IT, Technology Management, Nano, Digital Electronics, Bio, Transportation and Machinery, New Materials, Environment and Energy
※ Individuals with qualifications under ① and ④ must work only in the field related to their degree or certification
※ The field of work for individuals under ② and ③ should not be in businesses that go against good customs or other social orders, including entertainment businesses similar to those
2. Continuous residence in Korea for at least 3 years before the application date
① (For those who acquired their degree or certification overseas) Must have worked for at least 3 years in a domestic company in the field related to their degree or certification and continuously resided in Korea up to the application date
② (For those who acquired their degree domestically) Must have worked for at least 3 years in a field not forbidden by their visa status, not in entertainment businesses similar to those going against good customs or other social orders, and continuously resided in Korea from 3 years before the application date to the decision date
※ Work continuity is recognized if the total days of work interruption due to changing employers during the 3 years is within 90 days
3) Must be currently employed full-time in a regular position by a domestic company for at least 1 year at the time of application
※ Work continuity is recognized if the total days of work interruption due to changing employers during the year is within 30 days, and those days are counted towards the employment period
Doctorate in Advanced Fields (F-5-9)
Eligible Individuals
- Individuals who have obtained a doctoral degree in a specific field overseas and are employed by a domestic company at the time of applying for F-5 status, recognized by the Minister of Justice
Decent Conduct Requirement, Basic Aptitude Requirement, Livelihood Maintenance Requirement
1. Decent Conduct Requirement (Submission of foreign criminal record check exempted)
2. Basic Aptitude Requirement (Not subject to assessment)
3. Livelihood Maintenance Requirement (Income or assets are applicable: either the previous year's income amount is at least 1 times the GNI or the previous year's net assets are above)
Doctorate in Advanced Fields (F-5-9) Individual Requirements
- Must have been continuously employed full-time in a related field to the obtained doctoral degree from overseas in advanced technology sectors at a domestic company, etc., for at least one year up to the application date
※ Eight advanced technology fields: IT, Technology Management, Nano, Digital Electronics, Bio, Transportation and Machinery, New Materials, Environment and Energy
※ Work continuity is recognized if the total sum of days of work interruption due to changes in employment during the year is within 30 days, and these are counted towards the employment period
Doctorate in General Fields (F-5-15)
Eligible Individuals
- Individuals who have completed a regular doctoral program at a domestic graduate school and obtained a doctoral degree, recognized by the Minister of Justice
※ Doctoral degree: according to the Higher Education Act, students of doctoral and integrated master's and doctoral degree programs
Decent Conduct Requirement, Basic Aptitude Requirement, Livelihood Maintenance Requirement
1. Decent Conduct Requirement (Submission of foreign criminal record exempted)
2. Basic Aptitude Requirement (Not subject to assessment)
3. Livelihood Maintenance Requirement (Income or assets are applicable: either the previous year's income amount is at least 1 times the GNI or the previous year's net assets are above)
Doctorate in General Fields (F-5-15) Individual Requirements
- Must have completed a regular doctoral program at a domestic graduate school and obtained a doctoral degree before the application date, and have been continuously working full-time in a field not against good morals or other social order, including non-entertainment service sectors (similar sectors included), for at least one year up to the application date.
※ Applies only to those who met the student visa (D-2) conditions, including doctoral programs (D-2-4), and does not apply to those who obtained a degree without completing the specified course of study at a domestic graduate school.
※ Irrespective of the field of study of the doctoral degree held.
※ Continuity of employment is recognized if the total sum of days of interruption in employment due to workplace changes during the year is within 30 days, and these are included in the calculation of the employment period.
