If you weren't paid: what you are owed, and how to claim it
ENEnglishThe single most important sentence on this page:
Your right to be paid for work you already did does not depend on your visa.
Korean labour law applies regardless of nationality or residence status. Even a person
working without the right visa can claim wages for work already performed. The Ministry
of Employment and Labour handles wage claims as wage claims — it is a different matter
from your immigration status.
People stay silent because they are afraid, and employers who withhold wages are
counting on exactly that.
WHAT YOU ARE ENTITLED TO
Minimum wage applies to everyone — every nationality, every visa, every industry. As of
2026 it is 10,320 KRW per hour. At the standard 209-hour month used for full-time work,
that comes to 2,156,880 KRW per month.
This figure is revised every year. Check the current one rather than trusting this page:
https://www.moel.go.kr
"Wages" is broader than your base salary. Unpaid amounts commonly include:
- Overtime, night work, and holiday work premiums
- Annual leave allowance you did not take and were not paid for
- Bonuses that your contract promised
- 퇴직금 (severance), which is not a gift — see below
퇴직금 IS NOT OPTIONAL
If you worked continuously for one year or more, you are owed severance: at least 30
days of average pay for each year of service.
퇴직금 ≈ average daily wage × 30 × (total days worked ÷ 365)
Average daily wage is calculated from your last three months of pay.
It must be paid within 14 days of leaving. Many foreign workers never hear the word,
finish a two-year contract, and leave the country without claiming a substantial amount
that was legally theirs.
THE CLOCK: THREE YEARS
Wage and severance claims expire three years after they became due.
Three years feels long, and it disappears fast — people wait, hope the employer pays,
change jobs, go home, and come back to it too late. If you are owed money, start now.
You can file even after you have left the job.
HOW TO FILE — IT IS FREE
You file a 진정 (complaint) with the Ministry of Employment and Labour. You do not need
a lawyer and there is no fee.
Online: https://labor.moel.go.kr
In person: the labour office for the district where the workplace is located
A labour inspector contacts both sides, examines the evidence, and can order payment.
Many cases settle at this stage, because the employer would rather pay than face the
consequences of a confirmed violation.
If you are worried about your residence status, get free legal advice first rather than
staying silent. Korea Legal Aid Corporation and many city-run foreign resident support
centres handle exactly these cases, with interpreters.
EVIDENCE: GATHER IT NOW, NOT LATER
The stronger your record, the shorter the process. Start collecting today, before any
dispute, because access to workplace systems disappears the moment you leave.
- Your employment contract. In Korea the employer is legally required to give you
written terms — pay, hours, duties, days off. If you never received one, say so;
that failure is itself a violation.
- Payslips, and bank records showing what actually arrived
- Your own record of hours worked — a simple daily note is worth a great deal
- Messages: KakaoTalk, texts, email. A manager saying "I'll pay you next month" in
writing is powerful evidence
- Photos of schedules or rosters posted at work
Keep copies somewhere that is not your work computer or work phone.
IF THE EMPLOYER GENUINELY CANNOT PAY
Where a business has closed or is insolvent, there is a state scheme (대지급금) that
pays certain unpaid wages and severance on the employer's behalf, and then recovers
from them. Ask the labour office about it — "my employer has no money" is not the end
of the road.
BEFORE THE PROBLEM: TWO HABITS
1. Get the contract in writing at the start, and keep your copy. If it is only in
Korean, ask for time to have it explained before signing. That request is normal
and reasonable.
2. Check your first payslip carefully against what you agreed. Problems are easiest
to fix in month one, while everyone is still being polite.
WHERE TO CHECK
Ministry of Employment and Labour: https://www.moel.go.kr
Labour portal (file online): https://labor.moel.go.kr
Plain-language legal guide (Korean): https://easylaw.go.kr
Statutes in full: https://www.law.go.kr
Immigration: https://www.hikorea.go.kr
Written by the Go Korea team, accurate to the best of our knowledge as of August 2026.
Minimum wage and thresholds change annually, and individual cases turn on their own
facts — confirm with the labour office or a legal aid service before acting. This is
general information, not legal advice.
If you went through this process, please reply and tell us how it actually went. Very
few people write about it afterwards, and that silence is part of why the next person
feels alone.