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Catullus
Joined: 09 Apr 2008
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 Posted: Sun Sep 04, 2016 10:31 am Post subject: Health insurance penalty |
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I have taught in hagwons in Seoul for several years, but I returned home to America in May and will be working here for the rest of the year. I am open to returning to Korea, but I am unsure what penalties I may face due to my previous employers never registering me for National Health Insurance.
When I first arrived in Korea, I was duped into the “independent contractor” scam. Once I realized that this was illegal, I looked into getting enrolled in the health insurance program. I found out that I would have to pay the government for all of the months that I was working but not paying into the health insurance program. I was unwilling to do this and finished my most recent contract without any health insurance. I will not take this chance in the future.
My question is this: now that my visa is expired, if I were to take a new job in Korea, get a new visa, and enroll in the national health insurance program, would I still be on the hook for the months that I did not contribute while working on my previous visa? Is there a way for me to work again in Korea with health insurance but without paying for all of the years that I worked without insurance? |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Sun Sep 04, 2016 10:57 pm Post subject: |
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Answer to your question. No.
Come back on a new visa and the past is forgotten (in the case of NPS and NHIS) PROVIDED they had not initiated a claim against you first.
If they filed a claim for back payments before you left then it will still be there when you return.
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FastForward
Joined: 04 Jul 2011
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| Posted: Tue Sep 06, 2016 4:31 pm Post subject: |
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| ttompatz wrote: |
Answer to your question. No.
Come back on a new visa and the past is forgotten (in the case of NPS and NHIS) PROVIDED they had not initiated a claim against you first.
If they filed a claim for back payments before you left then it will still be there when you return.
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Anyway around paying back payments if you are on an F visa? Since your visa would stay the same when you leave the country, I'm assuming this only works on E visas. |
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pmwhittier
Joined: 03 Nov 2011
Location: Korea
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| Posted: Tue Sep 06, 2016 4:53 pm Post subject: |
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| FastForward wrote: |
| Anyway around paying back payments if you are on an F visa? Since your visa would stay the same when you leave the country, I'm assuming this only works on E visas. |
I've always found NPS to be a lot like Immigration in that if you don't get a favorable response from the agent you are currently talking to, hang up and call again or move to the next counter. Rules and regulations are interpreted differently by each and every employee. So one might be a hardass, the next will be a saint. Try, try again.
*disclaimer - not official advice. |
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nicwr2002
Joined: 17 Aug 2011
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| Posted: Wed Sep 14, 2016 4:35 pm Post subject: |
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| My Korean wife asked an agent about me getting health insurance, and that agent said, "No, he isn't obligated to have insurance because he is a foreigner." So, who knows what's going on? |
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Lazio
Joined: 15 Dec 2010
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| Posted: Thu Sep 15, 2016 4:58 am Post subject: |
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| nicwr2002 wrote: |
| My Korean wife asked an agent about me getting health insurance, and that agent said, "No, he isn't obligated to have insurance because he is a foreigner." So, who knows what's going on? |
That's right. If you are an independent contractor, unemployed etc. you are not obligated to pay the national health insurance. Korean citizens are.
However, if you ever want to get insurance in the future, you will need to pay for all that missing time. |
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Aine1979
Joined: 20 Jan 2013
Location: Incheon
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| Posted: Thu Sep 15, 2016 5:27 am Post subject: |
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| Lazio wrote: |
| nicwr2002 wrote: |
| My Korean wife asked an agent about me getting health insurance, and that agent said, "No, he isn't obligated to have insurance because he is a foreigner." So, who knows what's going on? |
That's right. If you are an independent contractor, unemployed etc. you are not obligated to pay the national health insurance. Korean citizens are.
However, if you ever want to get insurance in the future, you will need to pay for all that missing time. |
This isn't 100% accurate - to avoid making back payments for all the time you weren't registered with NHIS, you just have to leave the country and re-enter - I know quite a lot of people who have done this, and you're just charged from the date you most recently entered the country.
One guy I know who wasn't registered for almost 2 years (legitimate IC and still is) was hit with a huge back payment bill when he finally did register because he'd never left SK. |
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Lazio
Joined: 15 Dec 2010
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| Posted: Thu Sep 15, 2016 3:09 pm Post subject: |
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For F class visas, that doesn't work.
As long as you are on the same visa, leaving and re-entering the country won't reset the clock.
I'm guessing the people you know came back on a different visa. I mean same visa type but different employer and all. |
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Aine1979
Joined: 20 Jan 2013
Location: Incheon
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| Posted: Thu Sep 15, 2016 6:25 pm Post subject: |
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| Lazio wrote: |
For F class visas, that doesn't work.
As long as you are on the same visa, leaving and re-entering the country won't reset the clock.
I'm guessing the people you know came back on a different visa. I mean same visa type but different employer and all. |
No, the same visa, (E2) and the same employer - NHIS looked at the last date they entered the country and they only had to backpay from then. Notbsure if it's an official thing or just a loophole, but I know quite a few people who have taken a quick trip overseas to reset the date before starting to pay. |
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nicwr2002
Joined: 17 Aug 2011
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| Posted: Fri Sep 16, 2016 1:21 am Post subject: |
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| Would getting a F5 visa start you over? I've heard that an F5 visa gives you a new ID number. If that's the case, then I may just do that. |
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denverdeath
Joined: 21 May 2005
Location: Boo-sahn
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| Posted: Fri Sep 16, 2016 4:03 am Post subject: |
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Don't think it starts you over. I had 1 foreign ID number change since I've been here. Don't think an exit etc matters anymore, regardless of visa status...at least regards to immigration. Having said that, maybe Lazio and the others have better info regarding health and pension..
I DO know that one of the hakwons I worked for a decade ago under-reported my earnings. THAT seemed to cause ALL kinds of trouble in my 2nd yr at that place wrt to taxes, health, and pension. Watch ur boss! |
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