[Eric]

I've just learned that the Korean governement is going to extremes to keep nefarious characters out of Korea. While I think that's great, here are a few steps teachers will have to take starting this December:

1. All teachers will have to submit a criminal background check and health check before getting a job.

2. Visas will be issued from the the Korean consulate in the teacher's home country. This means no more visa runs to Japan or China if you are already in the country.

3. Before a visa is issued, the teacher must undergo an interview at a Korean consulate nearest their hometown. For some people, this can be quite a trip, especially if you are already in Korea!!

Here's a link to the article that covers it in more detail: E2's to need medical, criminal checks (If that article disappears, let me know and I'll post it.)

I imagine, like the article mentions, this is going to drive qualified teachers away. It will also probably drive the salaries up when thousands of hagwons (private institutes) are scrambling to get teachers into their schools.

Regarding getting your criminal background check, currently, the FBI says, "Allow approximately 16-18 weeks for processing, upon receipt to the FBI.".

Imagine all of the teachers that are there now that do not have their criminal background checks; when it comes time to renew their visa, they'll have to fly back to their home country, go to the nearest consulate, do an interview, wait 4 to 5 months for their criminal background check, pay for a health check and then they can return to their job. Hmm... I think I'd try a new country.

At any rate, I'm glad I don't have to go through all of that (as I'm not there anymore) but it will be interesting to see how it plays out.

[susan53]

Crminal checks are standard in quite a lot of countries for getting documents as well as jobs. In the UK if you want to work with children or "vulnerable adults" you'll need a check, and in Italy you need a "nulla osta" ( = no impediment) for a thousand and one documents - from getting a job to opening a company to getting married to getting a pilot's licence - and it's the same for Italians, not just for foreigners. So perhaps Korea is just catching up with the rest of the bureaucratic world, though in the case of the criminal check, I have to say I have a sneaking sympathy. As for the rest, is it actually any more difficult than a non-European trying to get work in Europe, or anyone trying to get a green card for the States? If you're an American trying to get documents to work in Italy, think at least a year. 18 weeks is nothing ....

[Eric]

Quote susan53

If you're an American trying to get documents to work in Italy, think at least a year. 18 weeks is nothing ....

Wow! I didn't know that.

[Denis DNT]

Now that Asia is catching up I think the only safe corner left for criminals is the African continent.

[wilsonslacker]

Yes, ok I'm willing to get a criminal check done. I have nothing to hide. However, what I can't seem to find out from anyone (I even called the Korean Consulate in New York and they didn't know) is what kind of back ground check is required. I called my local State police and they listed off a half a dozen possible reports they could make within 6 to 8 weeks. Then there is the FBI and commercial companies that do background checks for profit. So which one is it?

Or is just anything that states "No criminal record" acceptable?

Perhaps the American criminal check system is seriously flawed...I'm having the "sinking feeling" described below.

This might be a side point, but I found the following while trying to find an answer:

National Criminal Background Checks: Myths, Realities & Resources by Jackie Walters

"Revised 07 November 2007. Anyone who has been asked to conduct a "national criminal background check" knows the sinking feeling that comes from facing the requestor's confident assumption that such a request is reasonable, possible, inexpensive, and fast. When a Google search brings up dozens of hits containing words like comprehensive, instant results, free, and all 50 states, it is easy to see where that confident assumption comes from. Where to start to explain all the caveats, cautions, costs, and prohibitions?

No central repository exists for federal, state, and local ... criminal records.

Seven facts contradict the myth that a national criminal background check is even possible.

No central repository exists for federal, state, and local (i.e., county, parish, municipal, etc.) criminal records.

Not all states have automated systems for collecting data from reporting agencies and local jurisdictions. As of December 31, 2003, 49 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico had automated criminal history information systems, but only 25 of these were fully automated.The content, accuracy, quality and timeliness ofthe data vary considerably among the states.

No federal law imposes standards for collecting, indexing, searching, and using criminal record data. Among the 50 states, standards vary for collecting the four types of criminal records -- arrest, criminal court (federal, state and local), corrections (federal, state and local), and state criminal repository records.

On-site searches can be costly. Conducting an on-site county-level criminal court search in every location where an individual has lived for the previous seven years (the investigation industry's standard time frame) could be prohibitively expensive.

States are increasingly restricting personally identifying data in original public records. Responding to concerns about privacy issues and identity theft, states are passing laws restricting the inclusion of personally identifying data, such as birth dates and Social Security numbers, in public records. Researchers and commercial vendors will no longer be able to link data across record types (judgments, liens, tax, property, etc.) using personal identifiers to verify identity and establish relationships.


A variety of federal and state privacy statutes limit permissible use of and/or access to data on individuals. Any end user can purchase a search from a proprietary vendor or a government-maintained Web site. However, users are responsible for using the data in accordance with permissible purposes as defined by several federal statutes, notably the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) (15 USC § 1681), the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (15 USC §§ 6801-6809), the Driver's Privacy Protection Act of 1994 (18 USC §§2721-2725), the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 USC §552a), and corresponding state statutes. The most commonly-listed permissible purposes are pre- screening, consumer-driven transactions, fraud detection, and law enforcement. To insure compliance, some companies, such as ChoicePoint and Accurint (Lexis), credential end users for certain products before issuing a subscriber agreement.


So-called "national" databases are inaccessible to non-governmental users. The National Crime Information Center is maintained by the FBI and limited by federal law to law enforcement agencies. Similarly, the National Instant Criminal Background Check System is also maintained by the FBI to provide information on people desiring to purchase firearms. Access is restricted to agencies authorized by the FBI."



So I wish South Korea good luck....If the USA can't keep track of its own citizens I don't see how the Koreans expect to do this for Americans applying for E2 visas.

[HUE]

That seems harsher than the system implemented in Japan. Actually, it's all willy-nilly here, and you can get a one year visa or a three year visa largely on the whim of the person you deal with at immigration. They may ask for additional papers, too, requiring a second visit sometimes. But no criminal checks... yet.

[Denis DNT]

Perhaps the American criminal check system is seriously flawed...

Perhaps they are just trying to expose flawed systems.

They do sing everyday on TV about Asia catching up, don't they? They could just be striving to do better than what has always been considered standard.

It's a wait and see situation.

[thecrots]

Will the process take as long for Canadians? Will they have to follow all the same procedures as Americans in order to obtain a E2 visa?

[Denis DNT]

Sadly, yes. It's for everyone I hear.

[Eric]

Quote thecrots

Will the process take as long for Canadians?

Which process do you mean? I'm sure Canadians will also be subject to this but the process will only take as long as it will take for the Canadian government to process a criminal background check.

[Ashleyimports]

I wonder how long that system will last? Before schools start to complain to the goverment that it is hurting them not helping them.

When the schools in Korea start having to pay more for thier teacher (Alot more) they will then see that they have really made a mistake and will have to pay for this mistake.

I bet that this new system will last for about 6 months to one year and then it will change again.