Today, let's explore the changes that have taken place in the shipbuilding industry's E-7 visa recruitment process since the abolition of the quota system. We'll do this based on the latest manual as of August 2022
Firstly, let's take a look at the revised qualification requirements for the four eligible positions in the shipbuilding industry for E-7 visa recruitment: Hull Painter, Welder, Electrical Engineer, and Plant Engineering Technician.
Hull Painter
(Job Description)
A person who applies paint, lacquer, enamel, etc., using painting equipment on structures, ships, etc. They prepare surfaces for painting and paint wooden sections and internal devices of ships.
(Applicable Job Examples)
Hull Painter (includes all processes of painting such as pre-treatment, paint application, and coating enhancement such as TICOT)
They may be referred to as Spray Supervisor, Touch-up Roller, LOC (Line Quality Control), etc., in practice.
(National Employment Protection Review Standards) General standards apply.
- Number of Employees per Company: Allowed within 20% of the national employment quota
- Income Requirement: More than 80% of the previous year's per capita Gross National Income (GNI)
(Qualification Requirements)
◆ Hold a bachelor's degree or higher in a field related to ship painting and have a certain period of work experience in a related field.
-Education: Hold a Associate degree or higher in a field related to ship painting
-Major: Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Materials Engineering, Shipbuilding Engineering, Architectural Engineering, Automotive Engineering, Mechanical Engineering
※ If the major does not match the above but is deemed relevant, recognition is possible if at least three subjects related to painting are completed.
※ Subjects related to painting (example): For those with architectural experience, having worked in the painting field for a specified period or more
-Experience: Work experience in the painting field for a specified period or more
-Bachelor's Degree or Higher: More than 1 year
-Associate Degree: More than 5 years
-Experience Evaluation Standard: Comprehensive assessment based on the company's industry and job responsibilities
-Skill Verification Exception
◆ Those who have passed skill verification in the field of painting by a designated agency of the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Resources (e.g., Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association) are subject to relaxed experience requirements.
-Associate Degree or Higher: More than 2 years of experience
-Bachelor's or Higher: Exempt from experience requirement
-Skill Verification Standard: Comprehensive assessment based on the company's industry and job responsibilities
-Study Abroad Student Exception
◆ For those who have obtained a bachelor's degree or higher in engineering in Korea and perform painting-related tasks through an institution designated by the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Resources, the experience requirement is exempted upon passing skill verification.
-Skill Verification Institution: Institution designated by the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Resources (e.g., Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association)
-Skill Verification Standard: Passing the standards set by the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Resources
(Example - Exam type): Relevant major graduates directly take the skill verification exam
(Example - Education type): Relevant major graduates complete practical ship painting education for a specified period and then take the skill verification exam
(Additional Required Documents)
Recommendation letter from the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Resources; skill verification passers must include the skill verification confirmation document from the designated institution.
(Employer Standards)
Employers recommended as suitable for inviting foreign ship painting technicians by the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Resources.
※ Industry: Companies registered with business classifications such as 'Other Shipbuilding', 'Manufacturing of Ship Component Parts', 'Ship Painting', 'Painting', etc.
※ Korean Standard Industrial Classification: 31113 (Shipbuilding), 31114 (Manufacturing of Ship Component Parts), 42411 (Painting Business)
-Cooperating with Principal Employers: Companies with confirmed cooperation systems with principal employers for the invitation and management of ship painting technicians
(Visa Issuance) Single-entry visa with a maximum stay period of 2 years.
(Stay Management, etc.) General standards apply.
※ Change of workplace is limited to cases of closure, financial deterioration, etc. When changing the workplace, qualification requirements, employer standards, and allowed personnel per company for the foreigner's specific case are assessed according to visa issuance standards.
※ For changes due to inevitable circumstances, documents issued by the Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association (Recommendation Letter and On-Site Inspection Report) are essential.
(Social Integration Program)
Evaluation score of 21 or more in the pre-evaluation of the social integration program within 1 year after entry to Korea or completion of the first level of the program (applicable to those who entered after January 1, 2024).
※ Exempted for those eligible for the study abroad student exception.
(Additional Notes)
Unless otherwise specified, the pilot operation will continue until December 31, 2022.
Ship Welder
(Job Description)
Individuals with skilled abilities in non-ferrous metal shaping and manufacturing related to shipbuilding and similar fields.
(Applicable Job Examples)
Skilled ship welders in the shipbuilding field (TIG welding, CO2 welding, argon welding)
(National Employment Protection Review Standards) General standards apply.
(Income Requirement) More than 80% of the previous year's per capita Gross National Income (GNI)
(Introduction Process)
(Skill Verification)
Designate a skill verification team within a designated agency of the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Resources (e.g., Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association) to conduct on-site skill verification for ship welding. Issue skill verification confirmation certificates to those who pass.
○ (Recommendation Letter Issuance) Minister of Industry, Trade, and Resources (Shipbuilding and Offshore Plant Department) ※ Required
○ (Qualification Requirements) Intermediate or higher ship welder qualification obtained + More than 2 years of experience + Pass on-site skill verification
○ (Welding Qualification)
Intermediate or higher qualification in FCAW, GMAW, GTAW welding technology fields issued in accordance with standards such as AWS commonly used in domestic shipyards (identity, skill level, application criteria specified, and includes seal of issuing body or signature of responsible individual, entry card [or employee card], test result sheet, and employment certificate)
※ AWS (American Welding Society), ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers), ISO (International Organization for Standardization), EN (European Norm), International Classification Societies [Korean Register (KR), American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), Lloyd's Register (LR), DNVGL (Norway, Germany)]
※ Excluding welding positions below (commonly denoted as F, 1G) and horizontal positions (commonly denoted as H, 2G)
(Study Abroad Student Exception)
People who have obtained a bachelor's degree or higher in an engineering field in Korea and have passed skill verification in the welding field by a designated institution of the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Resources (e.g., Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association) are exempt from qualification and experience requirements.
(Required Documents)
Qualification certificates issued by international classification societies or similar, skill verification confirmation certificates issued by the skill verification team, degree certificate (for applicants)
※ If issued by the sending country's government, include a verification certificate with qualifications and career details apostille (or consular confirmation) for submission
(Employer Standards)
Shipbuilding companies and related block manufacturing companies with an average annual sales of over 1 billion KRW in the past 3 years + At least 10 regular workers + No legal violations or deserters in the past 2 years
※ Assess requirements of target foreigner and employing company through submitted documents, computer records, etc., and conduct surveys if particularly necessary
(Visa Issuance) Single-entry visa with a maximum stay period of 2 years.
(Stay Management, etc.) General standards apply with enhanced post-arrival management.
- Conduct Korean language education for visa holders under the jurisdiction of the Shipbuilding Association and provide in-house (outsourced) technical education for insufficiently skilled workers. Encourage reemployment of skilled ship welders for companies in need of additional hiring due to temporary closure, financial difficulties, wage non-payment, etc.
(Social Integration Program)
Evaluation score of 21 or more in the pre-evaluation of the social integration program within 1 year after entry to Korea or completion of the first level of the program (applicable to those who entered after January 1, 2024).
※ Exempted for those eligible for the study abroad student exception.
(Additional Notes)
If there are no specific National Employment Protection contents regarding company size, employment ratio, minimum wage, etc., general standards apply across the board.
Electrical Engineering Technician
(Job Description)
Individuals engaged in designing, developing, testing, manufacturing, or supervising the installation of electrical equipment, components, or electrical systems used in commercial, industrial, military, scientific applications, etc.
(Applicable Job Examples)
Electrical product development technicians, power generation equipment design technicians, power transmission and distribution equipment technicians, electrical control and measurement technicians
(Recommendation Letter Issuance)
Minister of Industry, Trade, and Resources (KOTRA), Minister of Small and Medium Venture Business (Small and Medium Business Promotion Agency): Limited to small and medium-sized enterprises
(Qualification Requirements, Visa Issuance, Stay Management, etc.)
General standards apply.
(National Employment Protection Review Standards)
Not applicable.
◆ Special Provisions for Introducing Skilled Workers in the Shipbuilding Field ◆
(Target)
Individuals who meet one of the following requirements and are employed by a company that has received a shipbuilding and offshore plant employment recommendation from the Minister of Industry, Trade, and Resources, and who fulfill the wage requirement of more than 80% of the previous year's per capita GNI at the time of employment contract.
① Individuals with a bachelor's degree or higher in the relevant field and more than 1 year of experience in that field
② Individuals with a Associate degree or higher in a relevant field and more than 5 years of experience in that field
(Skill Verification Exception)
Individuals who have passed on-site skill verification in the shipbuilding field by a designated agency of the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Resources (e.g., Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association) (verification of skill verification confirmation). Experience requirements are relaxed for these individuals.
① Individuals with a bachelor's degree or higher in the relevant field: Exempt from experience requirements
② Individuals with a a Associate degree or higher in a relevant field: More than 2 years of experience in that field
(Study Abroad Student Exception)
Individuals who have obtained a a Associate degree or higher in an engineering field in Korea and have passed on-site skill verification in the shipbuilding field by a designated agency of the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Resources (e.g., Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association) (verification of skill verification confirmation). Experience requirements are exempted for these individuals.
(Social Integration Program)
Evaluation score of 21 or more in the pre-evaluation of the social integration program within 1 year after entry to Korea or completion of the first level of the program (applicable to those who entered after January 1, 2024).
※ Exempted for those eligible for the study abroad student exception.
(Workplace Change)
Change of workplace is limited to cases of temporary closure or worsening business conditions of the original workplace. When applying for approval or reporting a change of workplace, the foreigner's qualification requirements, employer standards, and allowable personnel per company will be assessed based on the visa issuance standards.
※ In cases of necessary workplace changes due to unavoidable reasons, documents issued by the Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association (recommendation letter and on-site inspection report) are mandatory.
(National Employment Protection Review Standards)
General standards apply
Plant Engineering Technician
(Job Description)
Individuals engaged in tasks related to construction, design, construction supervision, testing, etc., for factories and large-scale facilities.
(Applicable Job Examples)
Industrial facility plant design technicians, power generation facility plant design technicians, environmental facility plant design technicians, automation facility plant design technicians, industrial facility design technicians, sewage treatment facility design technicians, chemical plant design technicians, chemical equipment plant engineering technicians, water treatment system plant design technicians, specialized equipment technicians in shipbuilding field (thermal insulation, refrigeration technology, etc.)
(Recommendation Letter Issuance)
Construction industry: Minister of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport (Overseas Construction Policy Division)
Industries other than construction: Minister of Industry, Trade, and Resources (KOTRA)
Special equipment and production technicians (mandatory, Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Resources, Offshore Plant Department)
(Qualification Requirements, Visa Issuance, Stay Management, etc.)
General standards apply.
Revisions to Guidelines for Expanding the Introduction of Foreign Workers
① The quota system for welders and hull painters has been abolished. However, foreign employment is allowed within 20% of the total number of domestic workers per company to protect domestic jobs.
②To encourage domestic employment of foreign engineering students, the special provision for ship painting has been expanded to include the electrical and welding fields. The range of majors eligible for the study abroad student exception has also been broadened to encompass all engineering majors related to the field of ship painting.
※ For ship welders, if they hold a Associate degree or higher in Korea in an engineering field and pass the skill verification conducted by a designated agency of the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Resources (Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association), the experience requirement is exempted.
③ To address the practical issue of verifying overseas welding and electrical experience, the experience requirement has been relaxed for individuals who pass the skill verification. Specifically, the experience requirement has been changed from 1 year to exemption for those with a bachelor's degree or higher in the relevant field and from 5 years to 2 years for those with a Associate degree or higher in a relevant field.
④ KOTRA, an organization unrelated to the shipbuilding industry, will oversee the introduction of foreign labor for welders, simplifying the introduction process.
⑤ With the anticipated expansion of foreign labor introduction due to the abolition of the quota system, measures have been taken to support the adaptation of foreign workers to life in Korea and prevent abuse of the system, such as visa fraud. To ensure safety and prevent work-related issues due to communication difficulties, a requirement to complete the social integration program within 1 year after entry has been introduced. The Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Resources, in conjunction with the Ministry of Justice, will check the status of foreign labor in the shipbuilding industry, clarify responsibilities, and exclude intermediary agencies from provisional recommendations in cases of visa fraud.
⑥ The operation of the ship painter and electrical technician systems, which were run as pilot projects, has been made permanent, and industry-specific wage standards have been standardized.