Korean Job Discussion Forums

[OBwannabe]

When you send all of the required documents for E2 visa, do you send them straight to the hagwon that you are going to work for? Or do you send them to the immigration office in the city you will live in/work?

You send the original copy of the CBC with notarization and consulate stamp as well, right? Not a photocopy?

The reason I ask the second question is...what happens if the school changes its mind after you send your documents off? Does immigration keep your CBC so you can apply for other positions?

I've been offered a job, but feel like they may flake out last second if they find someone who is already in country.

Thanks

[peachKitten713]

What I think you are generally supposed to do (and what I did) is send your documents directly to the school you have accepted the contract with. They will then take your documents to Immigration (and maybe some other documents they need on their end) themselves and pass the Visa Issuance Number/Confirmation of Visa Issuance Number on to you via email.
If you are working through a recruiter, they might prefer you to send the documents to them instead.

The documents I sent were:
2 signed copies of my contract
Self health check statement (you'll be sent a pdf of this)
A copy of my passport photo page
My resume/cv
Passport-sized photos (I had to send 6, but the number may vary)
*A notarized and apostilled photocopy of my Bachelor's degree.I believe in the past, schools would ask for the original copy, but now they want you to photocopy it, have that photocopied notarized (to show it is a true copy of the original) and then apostilled at the state level (from my understanding, the apostille is so it can be used/accepted internationally).
*Finally, the Criminal Background Check. You do have to send the original CBC which has to have been done at the Federal level (FBI). You don't need to take it to a notary because all of the FBI CBCs are authenticated automatically now (I think you used to have to send a note requesting it be authenticated with a seal and signature). Then you should have had it apostilled (since it is a federal document it has to be apostilled at the federal, not state, level- so you have to send it to Washington, DC.)

* This information was my process as an American; if you are from a different country, it will be slightly different.

As for your second concern, from what I've read... You should only be sending them your documents if you're sure you want to work for them. Because you are basically kissing them goodbye.
If they back out on their end, unfortunately, you probably won't get them back. I guess if they get your document package but the day before decide to hire someone else, maybe they could be nice and send the documents back to you since they have no intention of taking them to Immigration. But like I said, from what I've read, that probably wouldn't happen. If they don't take your docs to Immi, then it won't be an issue if you have extra docs and another job offer.
Now if they took them to Immigration and got the Visa Issuance Number and then backed out, you would be even more screwed because I think it would be difficult to get another visa from a different school even if you had extra documents. You'd have to wait for it to expire(not sure of the time frame, some say one year, some say one month, some say the school has to report it, not sure) or go teach in another country.

It's always a good idea to have multiple copies of your documents. I even got an extra CBC in case something like this happened (knock on wood ^^), although I believe they are only valid for 6 months. And I got an extra apostilled degree photocopy as well.

But hopefully nothing bad will happen with your school and your process will go smoothly. And hopefully, this information helped!

[Kepler]

After your documents are submitted to immigration by your school they can't be used to apply for another position. You'll have to obtain a new set if your school flakes out on you. A visa issuance number takes 90 days to expire anyway during which time you can collect new documents.