On September 13, the Overseas Labor Center (Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs) issued a warning to workers regarding fake information about dispatching workers to work in South Korea under the Foreign Workers’ Employment Permit Program of the Korean Government (EPS Program).
The Center, a unit under the Ministry, is the only agency authorized by the Ministry to coordinate with the Korea Human Resource Development Agency (HRD Korea) to implement the EPS-E9 Visa Program.
Recently, some individuals have impersonated the Center by posting job advertisements for workers to go to South Korea, with the intention of deceiving them.
Therefore, the Overseas Labor Center advises that, for the South Korean market, it only dispatches workers under the EPS Program (E9 Visa). Participation in this program requires workers to register and pass two rounds of Korean language tests (EPS-Topik) and a skills assessment.
The exam is organized according to the plan of the Korean Ministry of Employment and Labor, in agreement with Vietnam’s Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs. Workers can register for the exam through the Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs Service, or the Center for Employment Services in their province/city of registered residence.
The Center affirms that no other organization or individual is involved in the selection and dispatch process of the EPS Program. They do not recruit workers for the seasonal worker program (E8 Visa), skilled worker program (E7 Visa), or fishing vessel crew program (E10 Visa), among others.
Information about the Korean language test, contract signing, and departure is publicly available on the Center’s website at www.colab.gov.vn.
The Overseas Labor Center provides this information to help workers understand the EPS Program’s procedures and regulations and to prevent scams by malicious individuals.
In case of being scammed by individuals impersonating the Overseas Labor Center, workers are advised to report the incident to the police and inform the Center for coordination and verification.
In 2024, South Korea announced a quota of 15,734 Vietnamese workers to be selected under the EPS Program, including 11,246 in the manufacturing sector, 200 in construction, 895 in agriculture, and 3,033 in fisheries.
According to HRD Korea, there will be no new Korean language tests until the end of 2024. Therefore, workers intending to apply for the EPS Program should be cautious when registering for Korean language courses offered by unreliable organizations that provide unclear or opaque information about the program.
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