South Korea Work Permit for Indians: Employer Steps and Timeline

The steps and timings below are as published on the official sources, checked on 15 October 2026. For tourist, student and family visas, see our South Korea visa page for Indian applicants.

What is a Korean "work permit" for an Indian applicant?

What Indians call a Korean work permit is, in the India-facing sources, a long-term work visa. For skilled jobs, that is usually the E-7 (professional and skilled workers), Korea's main employer-sponsored route. It is issued as a long-term single-entry visa after you submit at a Korean Visa Application Centre with a visa issuance number from Korea.

The Korean missions and KVAC pages do not describe a separate permit document that you collect in India. Foreign residents in Korea hold an Alien Registration Card (the dependent family checklist asks for the inviter's card), so expect a registration step after arrival and ask your employer how it is handled.

For short assignments of less than 90 days, the C-4-5 short-term employment visa applies instead, with a different set of employer documents.

What does the employer handle before you can apply?

Three things sit with the Korean employer, and none of them can be done at a KVAC in India:

1. A compliant offer. The salary must meet the 2026 minimum for the E-7 category under Ministry of Justice Notice 2025-406: KRW 31.12 million (E-7-1), KRW 25.89 million (E-7-2 and E-7-3) or KRW 26 million (E-7-4) a year, from 1 February 2026.
2. The visa issuance number. The long-term KVAC checklist lists "the visa issuance number from Korea" as a required item. The Korean-side procedure and its duration are not published on the India-facing pages, so ask the employer for an expected date.
3. Gold Card cases. If the employer obtains a Gold Card employment recommendation for an E-7 expert, the Korea Visa Portal can issue an e-Visa, and you skip the KVAC visit.

For a C-4-5 short-term assignment, the documents come from both companies: the contract between the Indian and Korean companies, a dispatch and transfer order from your Indian employer, and an invitation letter and business registration from the Korean company.

What does the full timeline look like?

Chennai and Bengaluru timings exclude the day of submission. Timelines for the New Delhi and Kolkata KVACs are not published on the pages checked, so ask the centre when you submit.

Which documents does the KVAC want for a work visa?

The Chennai/Bengaluru checklist for a long-term visa with a visa issuance number lists:

• original passport with more than 6 months' validity;
• 2 colour photographs;
• the online visa application form, printed from the Korea Visa Portal;
• an original TB test report from a designated lab;
• a health condition form;
• relationship proof for any accompanying family;
• the visa issuance number from Korea;
• for research visas, an apostilled copy of the latest degree certificate.

Fees: Rs. 5400 normal or Rs. 8100 express, plus the VFS charge (Rs. 1380 on the checklist, Rs. 1600 on the Chennai/Bengaluru centre pages, Rs. 1000 at Mumbai-jurisdiction centres) and an optional Rs. 550 courier. No appointment is needed at the Chennai, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Goa and Hyderabad centres.

Timing traps that push back a start date

• Booking travel too far out at Mumbai-jurisdiction centres. Since 21 September 2026, files are accepted only if travel is within one month of submission.
• Leaving the TB test late. It must come from a designated lab, and the file is incomplete without it; incomplete applications are not accepted at the counter.
• Choosing express without checking eligibility. Express at Chennai/Bengaluru needs a confirmed air ticket and accommodation, and you cannot switch from normal to express after applying.
• Assuming a refusal can be fixed quickly. No reason is disclosed for non-issuance, and you may reapply only after three months.

Can your family travel with you?

There are two ways, and the timing differs.

• Together with you: the long-term work checklist asks for relationship proof for accompanying family, so family members can be included when you apply. For Gold Card E-7 experts, the Visa Portal issues e-Visas to F-3 family members as well.
• Joining you later: the long-term dependent family visa is for the spouse or unmarried children under 20 of a foreigner registered in Korea. Its checklist asks for the inviter's Alien Registration Card, latest 6-month bank statement, employment certificate and Korean housing contract, documents you will have only after you are working and living in Korea. The normal fee is Rs. 5400, and each dependant needs a TB test report from a designated hospital.

Yatra For Fun's India office in Gurugram prepares flight reservations, hotel bookings, travel itineraries and cover letters for visa files, with packages from INR 1,000 (flight reservation) to INR 3,000 (reservation, hotel, itinerary and cover letter). WhatsApp +91 95230 91018 or connect with us on our contact page.

Frequently asked questions

Which Korean office handles my work visa?

It depends on your state. The Embassy in New Delhi covers north, east and north-east India (KVACs in New Delhi and Kolkata), the Consulate General in Mumbai covers Maharashtra, Gujarat, Goa, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana, and the Consulate General in Chennai covers Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry.

How do I track my Korean work visa after submission?

Use the 14-digit reference number from the KVAC with your passport number, date of birth and name on the Korea Visa Portal. VFS also e-mails when the decision returns to the centre.

Can I start the Korean work visa process myself from India?

Not for the E-7. The KVAC accepts the long-term work application only with a visa issuance number from Korea, which the Korean side secures first.

Does the Korean work visa need travel insurance?

Insurance is not on the long-term work checklist. The only Korean visa in the official checklists we checked with an insurance requirement is the F-1-D digital nomad visa, which needs private medical cover of at least KRW 100 million.