Pulling out of a job, visa implications

So since moving to Korea in October I’ve had an....interesting time to say the least. Worked at a lovely school which has unfortunately closed down now, I’m still owed money. So I signed up for another job and was supposed to move in to my new accommodation today. It was dirty, still full of the last tenants belongings and dirty laundry and even had a note left on the bed complaining about how broken and run down the apartment was. It was also much much further from the school than the manager told me.

I didn’t stay there and went back to my current place which I can stay in until tomorrow. This whole new job is giving me bad feelings though, there’s no other foreign teachers been hired yet and the school opens on Monday, the curriculum isn’t finished and it’s being written up by the manager, accommodations awful and I feel like he’s not being honest with me.

So I’m wondering what are my options, I’m just about ready to walk away from this new job already as I haven’t even started yet and I already have had a bad experience. I haven’t transferred my visa yet so I’m still technically on my E2 from the old school which closed down. If I tell the new manager I’m not going to be taking the job anymore will there be any implications for my visa? At this point I’m thinking of heading home while I assess my options, then if I want to come back I can start a fresh but I wonder if I leave will he report me to immigration and mess up my chances of ever coming back?

Any advice is much appreciated

So since moving to Korea in October I’ve had an....interesting time to say the least. Worked at a lovely school which has unfortunately closed down now, I’m still owed money. So I signed up for another job and was supposed to move in to my new accommodation today. It was dirty, still full of the last tenants belongings and dirty laundry and even had a note left on the bed complaining about how broken and run down the apartment was. It was also much much further from the school than the manager told me.

I didn’t stay there and went back to my current place which I can stay in until tomorrow. This whole new job is giving me bad feelings though, there’s no other foreign teachers been hired yet and the school opens on Monday, the curriculum isn’t finished and it’s being written up by the manager, accommodations awful and I feel like he’s not being honest with me.

So I’m wondering what are my options, I’m just about ready to walk away from this new job already as I haven’t even started yet and I already have had a bad experience. I haven’t transferred my visa yet so I’m still technically on my E2 from the old school which closed down. If I tell the new manager I’m not going to be taking the job anymore will there be any implications for my visa? At this point I’m thinking of heading home while I assess my options, then if I want to come back I can start a fresh but I wonder if I leave will he report me to immigration and mess up my chances of ever coming back?

Any advice is much appreciated

You have answered your own question...trust your instincts on this one.

Have you looked into obtaining a D-10 visa?  Did your school provide you with a letter of release ? That aspect may not even be relevant, as they have closed down  Thus, the D-10 visa will be the best answer for your situation.  However, jumping into another that in which you have already received credible bad vibes from, is not the answer. 

You can easily book a hostel...or a goshiwon.  You can use that as our base, while you are looking for work.  Though, you should decide where you want to be.  Better yet, you need to obtain that D-10, or, just keep looking for a better job.  There are many jobs out there...perhaps a public school?

Just don't pursue a path that you know will regret.   If you have not provide any paperwork that would enable your visa to be transferred, you don't have to worry.  Don't be intimidated and don't stress too much.  Just, find some temporary living quarters, go to your nearest immigration office on Monday and explain the situation (and be armed with all past documentation relating to the school that closed down), apply for a D-10 (it will cost a bit and will take between 2-3 weeks but you will still be able to look for work) which will give you a very good amount of time find another job (and be able to leave and come back), get on the job boards and apply for what you want (go for a direct hire), where you want. 

If you  just keep calm, gather your information, consolidate your resources and establish temporary living quarters, you will be fine. 

Thanks! I have my release letter and all the relevant documents for transferring a visa. I left the last school on very good terms so I’ve had no issues getting all my paperwork. However because the school was in such financial trouble I am still owed money. So my issue is that if i stay I’m kind of gambling on my previous boss paying me the money I’m owed sometime over the next 2 weeks otherwise I’ll be in a really sticky situation financially. I’m also unsure at this point what route to go down with my next job.

I was wondering if I leave Korea and decide to start a fresh looking for jobs (if I want to come back) what happens with my visa? Can I transfer a visa while I’m out of the country? As my current E2 expires in November/December what happens if I apply for new jobs from home just like I did the first time?

Also for a bit more context, I had another job lined up who emailed me after i signed the contract to say they now wanted all female teachers instead (a week before my school was closing) so I had to quickly try find another new job as I had to move out of my accommodation, which is how I ended up with this one.

Get a D-10 visa...smoother sailing (well, unless you NEED to leave now).  You will have a better chance of finding the job you want, as opposed to doing it from home.  As I said, the D-10 visa will allow you to leave the country, come back and not have to worry about obtaining new documents. 

You need to decide where you want to work in terms of location, when you want to start and what you want to get out of it.

Decide what you want to do, first...stay and drive on, or, go home.

Any idea how much it costs to transfer to a D-10? You say it takes 2-3 weeks so what happens if I’m offered another job within the next 2 weeks or so?

Ok so a dramatic update 

My recruiter had a call from the school’s manager saying I’d pulled out of the contract and is now threatening to call immigration and the Korean national police on me. Saying as I signed the contract and turned it down 2 days before the start of it I’m liable to be reported as they have my signed contract.

She was very threatening in her message but I believe this is all just bitterness because she won’t be getting her recruiters fee? Surely I’m not in any danger with the police or immigration? Like i said all I did was sign the contract before I’d seen the state of the accommodation and learnt more about the job.  I haven’t handed over any documents or started the visa transfer procedure.

There's literally nothing that immigration and the police can do about this, and I would pay money to listen to that phone call if it happened, which it wouldn't, because the recruiter knows this too.

Yeah that’s what I suspected. Part of me really wants to respond and put her in her place, she needs to be told that she can’t threaten people like that. Then the other part of me thinks it’s best to just leave it, as it don’t want to piss her off to the point she actually tries reporting me to spite me. However pointless it may be.

Just ignore her. Block her phone number and e-mail.

Recruiters consider you as a commodity not as a person. Don't feel bad about shitting on them.

The worst thing that can happen, is that the recruiter will put you on their little black list.  As most of the recruiters/agencies all know each other, they do share information. 

I know you want to put the recruiter in her RIGHTFUL place, but, just walk away.  If she is going to stoop to that level, just block all communication(s).  If you had handed over any documents that would enable the visa transfer, then you would be in a pickle.  Not because you would be forced to work but because you would have a hard time finding another job.

The D-10 visa is the way to go.  I forgot the cost but...someone here will know.  Or, do a search on it.  Yes, it takes 2-3 weeks but it will be worth it.  Now, again...you need to go to immigration on Monday.  Because, your school should have reported this and you don't want to be in limbo, passed a certain time.  So...MONDAY..no excuses. 

Yes, go asap. I remember getting fined at immigration for being 8 weeks late with my renewal. 4 million.

I’m sure someone told me I’d have 14 days after the last day of school before my visa would be expired. As apparently my director has 14 days to pay up all outstanding wages etc before he’s liable for legal action, as that’s the day the school is officially registered as closed down. (It officially runs out in November but maybe that’s not relevant anymore).

I was therefore thinking of taking the next 1-2 weeks to look into potential jobs and if I find one I really like, transfer my visa as normal. Then if I don’t find a job I like, get my final payments and head home/go travel for a bit.

I’m sure someone told me I’d have 14 days after the last day of school before my visa would be expired. As apparently my director has 14 days to pay up all outstanding wages etc before he’s liable for legal action, as that’s the day the school is officially registered as closed down. (It officially runs out in November but maybe that’s not relevant anymore).

I was therefore thinking of taking the next 1-2 weeks to look into potential jobs and if I find one I really like, transfer my visa as normal. Then if I don’t find a job I like, get my final payments and head home/go travel for a bit.

Just get the D-10 visa...if you are owed money, why would want to take the chance of leaving the country without it?

AGAIN...and AGAIN....just get the D-10 visa.

Give us an update on your situation, when you have time...

I’m stuck in such a back and forth with myself on what I want to do. One minute I’m comfortable with the fact I’ve been here for 5-6 months, experienced life out here and I’m happy to go home and start working on my career and finding something I’m passionate about (I’m 23). Then an hour later I think how much I’ll miss Korea, I think of the money I can make out here and how I might regret it once I get home.

I think I was lucky to find the school I was working at, and if it wasn’t for the school closing down I could easily have worked there for the full year without question. However not that I’m back on the job hunt, I’ve already had 2 bad experiences (first job I signed the contract for emailed me a week before my school was closing to say they changed their mind and now only wanted female teachers, then the second job I signed the contract for turned out to be a bit dodgy so I had to pull out.) Teaching isn’t my passion and I kind of can’t be bothered with the stress involved in starting a new job, all I seem to hear is negative things about “stressful work environment”, “rude, awful management”, “unorganised”, “huge workload” and I think is it really worth it for me if I don’t see a future for myself as an ESL/EFL teacher? I’m doing a few interviews this week just to find out more about certain jobs, but I won’t be signing up for anything I’m not 100% happy with.

I just wish there was such a thing as 6 month or 8 month contracts. Because it just seems silly of me to sign up for another 12 month teaching contract when my hearts not fully in it.

Did you, or did you not, obtain your D-10? 


Sounds like you just need to go home...

No not yet, thought I need to decide if I’m staying or going before I go and spend money on a new visa.

So, you did not go to immigration, even to report your status? 

Not yet, I’m heading down to the immigration office tomorrow and I’ll explain the situation to them and see what they say

Just an update on this as it might be helpful to others.

I went into the immigration office last week, I didn't have an appointment so just took a number and waited. Thankfully I was only there for just under an hour and a half. The woman I spoke to was super friendly and helpful.

I explained my situation that my school has closed down, I had lined up other jobs who cancelled on me last minute or they just hadn't worked out and that I'd been interviewing for other jobs over the past week or so. I told her I was concerned about my E2 visa expiring as I'd heard that once the school is registered as closed you have 15 days to either apply for an extension or switch to a D-10 visa. I'd been leaning more towards the E2 extension as while the D-10 would be good as it would allow me to stay another 6 months whilst I'm looking for a job, I knew that me staying here and forking out money to pay for accommodation etc (when I'm still undecided if I want to go back into teaching) with no income wouldn't really be a wise move.

So she checked and found that the school had not been in contact with immigration yet to say they had closed down, so until they do that my visa won't expire until its original date. So she told me once the school reports this to immigration, they will contact me and I can come in and transfer to a D-10 if thats what I want to do. Her parting words were "So just enjoy  " haha