Korean Food Service Providers Can Apply for Permission to Employ 

Foreign Workers on E-9 Visas

Sejong, 15 April 2024 — The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced on 2 April that food services had been newly added 

to the list of businesses allowed to hire foreign workers on E-9 visas under the Employment Permit System updated in 2024. Accordingly, 

Korean food service providers can apply for permission to employ foreign workers holding E-9 visas through regional offices of employment 

and labor and via official websites during the period from 22 April to 3 May (a second round of application for employment permission in 2024).

Starting with the second round of application for employment permission, Korean food service providers in 100 designated areas of the 

Republic of Korea can apply for permission to employ foreign workers as kitchen assistants. For those with five or more Korean employees 

on the payroll, their eligibility for application is that they must meet the requirement of five or more years of operation. In the case that they have less

than five Korean employees on the payroll, they must meet the requirement of seven or more years of operation to apply for permission. With regard 

to the maximum number of foreign workers to be employed, Korean food service providers with five or more Korean employees on the payroll can 

apply for permission to hire a maximum of two foreign workers, and Korean food service providers with less than five Korean employees on 

the payroll can apply for permission to hire no more than one foreign worker.

Korean food service providers who want to hire foreign workers can apply for employment permission at a regional office of employment and labor 

or via official websites (www.work24.go.kr or www.eps.go.kr) after making effort to recruit Korean nationals for seven days. The results of the second 

round of Korean food service providers’ application for permission to employ foreign workers will be announced on 21 May and then, employment permits 

will be issued during the period from 29 May to 4 June.