Korean Job Discussion Forums

lyssa628 · Joined: 07 Jun 2010

Has anyone had any difficulty doing this?

If you received your F4 in America, did you have problems with that F4 in Korea?

I am a Korean adoptee. I am nullifying my Korean citizenship right now and waiting for my adoption certificate from the Korean adoption agency. The social worker from adoption agency keeps telling me I need to come to Korea to obtain my F4 because it would be in my best interest. She won't elaborate why. However, I heard people have easily obtained F4s in America with the correct paperwork. I basically have everything except my new adoption certificate that nullifies my Korean citizenship. The Korean Consulate where I live said to come in and it should be fine.

Several jobs I am interested in Korea said I must have my F4 before so they can pay for my flights to Korea. Any advice on what I should do??

toph · Joined: 10 Jun 2010

I'm actually trying to get my F4 in the States as well...but I'm not adopted, and I only hold American citizenship since I was born here.

So I guess I'm in an easier position, but my consulate hasn't been so helpful (San Francisco) either. But I did talk to my dad and he said that I should get the visa in Korea too. Apparently it's easier to get it there, and I don't know if you can speak Korean or not, but if you can that would help with immigration.

Or if you have family in Korea--maybe they could help you get the visa. Cause my dad is telling me that I should be able to get it in Korea with no problem. But again, I am in a different situation than you, so sorry I can't be that much of a help~

lyssa628 · Joined: 07 Jun 2010

I am in San Francisco as well. That consulate just told me to bring all my paperwork in and they would see if its what I have.

toph · Joined: 10 Jun 2010

Ah icic...
Well, the crappy thing for me is that I live in Colorado, but the SF consulate represents Colorado (WHHAAA~???). Yeah, it makes no sense. So I've had to talk to them through phone, and email. But I've decided to just get my F4 in Korea since my dad's convinced me that it will be easier. If not, then...I guess I'm screwed lol Embarassed

But maybe you'll have better luck since you can actually talk to them face-2-face~

lyssa628 · Joined: 07 Jun 2010

Oh that makes sense. Yeah they weren't helpful on the phone. They just told me to come in.

I can't really afford to leave my job in America and fly to Korea on my wallet just to get my F4. I need a job and everything before I can just leave and most jobs are asking me to have my F4 beforehand.

Thanks for your input and help though.

toph · Joined: 10 Jun 2010

hmmm...
Well, my best advice? I would just apply to the jobs that you're interested in, even if you're not able to get your F4 in the US. Since hagwons are all independently owned, if you were able to get an interview and pass...then maybe you could get in contact with the management of the hagwon, and explain your visa situation to them. Maybe they'll understand, let you get your visa in Korea, and accept you...who knows?

Also, there are many hagwon jobs that want gyopo (F4 holders), but they don't require that you have the visa prior to leaving Korea. So maybe you should try looking into those...

Anyway, good luck~

kalliope · Joined: 20 Mar 2010

I got my F4 visa a few weeks ago, and it was definitely not a simple process. However, it can be done without flying out to Korea. Like what the others have been saying, the consulates are not very helpful so you really need to be proactive about finding out information on your own.

In regards to the OP's situation, there is an organization called GOAL that helps Korean adoptees apply for the visa. Try doing a search for them on here and you should be able to find some posts about them.

When I was interviewing for jobs, I found that it was split pretty evenly between schools that required that you obtained the visa prior to Korea vs. schools that were okay with you applying for the visa after getting to Korea.

lyssa628 · Joined: 07 Jun 2010

Thanks for your advice. Where did you apply for jobs? Did you use a recruiter? How did you approach schools?

kalliope · Joined: 20 Mar 2010

I applied through recruiters in the beginning, but I ended up finding a position on my own. Most of the recruiters that I got in touch with told me that there were no jobs available for F4 visa holders in Seoul and kept sending me positions in random areas that I didn't want to go to.

A lot of the bigger hagwons recruit on their own and often post jobs here on Dave's or other ESL job sites. If you go to their websites, they usually have an application that you can complete or instructions on how to apply.

It can be helpful to use a recruiter if you meet the right one, but I found that it's not easy to find a recruiter that is willing to work with Korean-Americans. Just start applying and wait until you get a couple offers before making your final decision. That way, you can compare different offers and figure out which one is the best.

crsandus · Joined: 05 Oct 2004

I did this two years ago but I didn't need to visit a consulate in order to get my F4. I just mailed everything to the consulate and it was fine. I did, however, have family mail me family registry stuff (twice!) from Korea so may have made things simpler. GOAL should be able to help with family registry papers. As for adoption papers, talk to your adoption agency? The biggest pain for me was the name change documents.