Foreign Professional Talent Recruitment — Transparent Fees
Fair and transparent pricing · Within legal cap · 90-day guarantee
Korvia Consulting is a 20-year recruitment partner connecting Korean institutions with foreign professional talent. We charge candidates (teachers and applicants) nothing — our fees are paid only by hiring institutions.
From public schools and international institutions to municipal special programs and corporate executives, we deliver search-firm-grade screening calibrated to the role's scope and seniority.
Legal Fee Cap — Korea Paid Employment Services Notice
Korvia Consulting is a licensed paid employment agency (reg. 2008-3210114-14-5-00027) under Korea's Ministry of Employment and Labor. All fees operate within the legal cap below.
Legal cap: 7.5% of annual salary (≈ one month's pay)
Under the Ministry of Employment and Labor Notice (2017-22, Domestic Paid Employment Services), for contracts of 3 months or longer the maximum fee hiring parties may be charged is 30% of three months' wages — roughly 7.5% of annual salary, or about one month's pay.
Base Fees by Institution Type
Fees below cover the standard placement cycle: sourcing, document verification, interview coordination, and visa guidance.
| Institution Type | Base Fee | Legal Cap |
|---|---|---|
| Elementary · Middle · High School (Public & Private) Offices of Education (EPIK · SMOE · GEPIK · GOE) · Municipal · Public & Private K-12 | ₩2,000,000 | 7.5% of annual salary (≈ 1 month's pay) |
| International Schools & Public Institutions International schools · Universities · Public education · Research institutes | ₩2,000,000 | 7.5% of annual salary (≈ 1 month's pay) |
| Private Institutions Hagwons · English kindergartens · Private academies | ₩1,500,000 | 7.5% of annual salary (≈ 1 month's pay) |
| Headhunting / Executive Search Corporate executives · Specialist roles · Municipal special-purpose programs | Custom quote | 10–15% of annual salary |
All fees are disclosed in writing before signing. No additional charges arise without prior agreement.
Headhunting · Special-Program Consulting
Beyond simple talent matching, we have a track record of end-to-end consulting — from program design aligned to the institution's mission, through to the recruitment of the matching professional. Representative engagements below; municipalities and institutions planning similar programs are welcome to reach out.
Seongdong Global Experience Center (SEC), Seoul
English experience-learning program design for children & youth, plus native-speaker staffing
Ganghwa Seokmodo Arboretum Program (GEEC)
Ecology-based English experience program design and dedicated staffing
Hwacheon Community English Education Program (HEC)
Year-round community-embedded English instruction staffing and oversight
Add-On Service Fees
The base fees above cover the standard placement cycle. When the scope expands with any of the services below, the base fee may increase or an add-on fee may be separately quoted.
Add-ons are billed only at amounts disclosed in the contract after consultation with your dedicated manager.
- ✓Interview delegation (conducting interviews on behalf of the institution, evaluation reports)
- ✓Interpretation services (during the hiring process or on-site)
- ✓Additional documentation (degree verification, background checks, apostille)
- ✓Urgent recruitment (accelerated matching, priority queue)
- ✓Program design consulting (curriculum advisory, lesson-design support)
- ✓Ongoing HR management (optional add-on agreement)
※ Attendance and talent development remain the institution's responsibility as employer by default, but ongoing HR-management services can be arranged via an add-on agreement upon request.
Billing Schedule & Payment Methods
Billing format varies by customer type and internal procurement procedure. All billing terms are disclosed in writing before signing.
| Customer Type | Billing Format | First invoice | Second invoice |
|---|---|---|---|
| General clients (hagwons · English kindergartens · corporations, etc.) | Two-part (50% + 50%) | 50% deposit on offer acceptance | 50% balance after arrival & work start |
| Public institutions (education offices · municipalities · international schools) | Lump-sum (100%) | 100% on offer acceptance | — |
Supported Payment Methods & Documentation
- ✅ Wire transfer (bank remittance)
- ❌ Credit-card payment (not currently available)
- ✅ Cash receipt (issued immediately after payment confirmation)
- ✅ Tax invoice available (paid employment services are VAT-exempt)
- ✅ Public Procurement Service (나라장터) contracts accepted for public institutions
Individual timing may be adjusted by mutual agreement; final terms are set at contract signing.
90-Day Replacement Guarantee
If the teacher departs within 90 days of arrival, Korvia supports replacement placement according to the cause of departure. Support applies to lawful contract-termination reasons under Korea's Labor Standards Act, and eligibility is determined through a case-by-case review.
| Reason | At fault | Replacement cost |
|---|---|---|
| Personal circumstances (family, etc.) | Teacher | Free replacement |
| Objective inability (clear contract breach, no-shows, etc.) | Teacher | Free replacement |
| Health issues (illness / accident — force majeure) | Force majeure | Free replacement |
| Institution non-compliance (unpaid wages, etc.) | Institution | Paid replacement |
| Business necessity (class closure, academy shutdown, etc.) | Institution | Paid replacement |
| Workplace issues (safety, harassment, etc.) | Institution | Paid replacement |
Scope of Korvia's service
Korvia handles promotion, sourcing, screening, and placement — document collection and verification, visa application support, and onboarding assistance. Once the teacher starts, attendance oversight and staff development remain the institution's responsibility as employer.
We are not a staffing-dispatch firm, so same-day replacement is not guaranteed by default. Institutions seeking ongoing staffing-style support can arrange it through an add-on service agreement.
Replacement Request Process
- 1
Immediate notice
Contact support@korvia.com or our customer center without delay.
- 2
Cause review
Within 5–7 business days we review the facts and determine which party is responsible.
- 3
Written response
We confirm in writing whether replacement support applies and under what cost terms.
- 4
Restart sourcing
Upon agreement, we resume candidate sourcing for the replacement immediately.
Same-terms replacement available
If the original position (salary, schedule, location, etc.) is still open, we provide a free replacement placement for teacher-fault or force majeure cases.
Not eligible for replacement — partial refund (50%)
- • Institution chose to hire a native teacher through another agency — 50% partial refund
- • Institution changed the hiring terms (salary, schedule, location) to a new position — no replacement
- • Institution closed the position or suspended hiring — no replacement
"Subjective class satisfaction" is not grounds for replacement
Korvia's hiring process (Demo Lesson · interview · document verification) gives institutions an objective opportunity to assess whether a candidate can carry the curriculum and fits the organizational culture. The final hiring decision rests with the institution. After hire, terminating a contract solely because of "low subjective class satisfaction" is therefore not a valid replacement ground — such cases are treated as institution-at-fault. Replacement applies when the teacher's objectively provable conduct (clear breach, no-shows, gross negligence) is at issue.
Cancellation & Refund Policy (After Offer Accept, Before Start)
If a cancellation occurs after the offer is accepted but before the actual start date, handling depends on which party is at fault. This policy is separate from the 90-day post-start replacement guarantee.
| Cancellation cause | Handling | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Institution circumstances (institution fault) | 50% fee retained (billed if not yet invoiced) | Class closure · position cancelled · internal reasons · unilateral termination |
| Candidate issue (teacher fault) | 100% refund · free replacement offered | Declining arrival · contract breach · document issue · visa denial |
| Korvia error (Korvia fault) | 100% refund | Document omission · gross negligence on our side |
| Force majeure | Case-by-case agreement | Natural disaster · pandemic · statutory change · government policy shift |
Korea Paid Employment Services — Fee Cap Notice
[Effective July 1, 2017] [Ministry of Employment and Labor Notice 2017-22]
Paid employment agencies in Korea may charge hiring parties and job seekers no more than the following:
Hiring party (Institution)
- Contract under 3 months — up to 30% of monthly wage
- Contract 3 months or longer — up to 30% of 3 months' wage (≈ 7.5% of annual salary, one month's pay)
Job seeker (Teacher)
- Under 3 months — up to 3% of wage
- 3 months or longer — up to 3% of monthly wage
※ Korvia does not charge candidates (native teachers) any fee.
Korvia Consulting · CEO: Henry Oh
Business reg: 120-87-06594 · Paid Employment Service reg: 2008-3210114-14-5-00027
25F Hyundai Lexion, 305 Gangnam-daero, Seocho-gu, Seoul · +82-2-553-6210
Frequently Asked Questions
Q.Do candidates (teachers) pay anything?
No. Korvia never charges candidates. Our fees are paid exclusively by hiring institutions after successful placement, always within Korea's Ministry of Employment and Labor's legal cap.
Q.When and by whom are fees paid?
The hiring institution pays Korvia after the successful placement is confirmed. For public schools this is the education office; for private institutions, the hagwon or international school. Invoicing is issued with a tax invoice after contract signing; the amount is always disclosed in writing beforehand.
Q.What is the legal fee cap in Korea?
Under Ministry of Employment and Labor Notice 2017-22, for contracts of 3 months or longer the maximum charge is 30% of three months' wages — approximately 7.5% of annual salary, or about one month's pay. Korvia operates entirely within this ceiling.
Q.Can I get a refund or replacement if the teacher leaves early?
Within 90 days of arrival we offer free replacement placement for lawful contract-termination reasons under the Labor Standards Act (personal circumstances, objective performance, health issues). Institution-at-fault cases (unpaid wages, contract breach, class closure) go through paid replacement.
Q.Are there hidden fees beyond the base fee?
No. The base fee covers the full standard placement cycle. Add-on services — interpretation, on-site interviews, urgent placement, apostille handling, and similar — are quoted separately and disclosed in the contract before any work begins.
Q.Does Korvia manage the teacher's daily performance after start?
Korvia is a paid employment agency — our role covers promotion, sourcing, screening, document verification, visa support, and onboarding assistance. Attendance and professional development are the institution's responsibility as the employer, which differs from a staffing-dispatch model. If ongoing HR management is desired, it can be arranged via an add-on service agreement.
Talk with Korvia
Fees, guarantee policy, contract terms, special-program collaboration — whatever you need, we're a message away.