E-7 Visa Salary Requirements and Minimum Wage Standards: A Complete Guide

When it comes to the E-7 visa, the single criterion that most often determines approval or rejection is the salary threshold. The baseline requirement is at least 80% of the previous year's per capita Gross National Income (GNI), which translated to approximately KRW 34.4 million in 2024, and sits around KRW 36 million for 2025–2026 as the practical cutoff. Depending on the occupation category, the bar may drop to 70% of GNI, or rise to 1.5–2× GNI for certain high-skilled talent tracks.

Here's the crux: clearing the number on paper isn't the end of the story. Reviewers also scrutinize how the salary is actually paid, which allowances are included, and whether the wage level is reasonable against the company's revenue. No matter how thick your document pile is, weak explanations on these points lead straight to document supplementation requests or outright denial. Below, we walk through the threshold figures, how the calculation works, exceptions by occupation, and the common sticking points that trip applicants up in actual review.

1. The Basic Principle Behind E-7 Salary Standards — What Is 80% of GNI?

The starting point for E-7 visa salary standards is 80% of the previous year's per capita Gross National Income (GNI). Based on the per capita GNI published by the Bank of Korea and Statistics Korea, the Ministry of Justice issues an annual review threshold.

Why GNI Is the Yardstick

Minimum wage isn't used as the benchmark; GNI is. The reason: if a foreign specialist's salary falls below the average Korean worker's income, the rationale for hiring a foreign professional weakens. In practice, reviewers essentially flip the question around and ask, "If this foreign national is earning less than the average domestic worker, why go out of your way to hire a foreigner at all?"

What the 80% Figure Means

The threshold was set at 80% rather than 100% to accommodate entry-level and junior specialists. Candidates with limited experience or starting salaries typically can't hit the full GNI average, so 80% serves as a cutoff. Put differently: 80% is the floor, not a pass mark. Applications that barely scrape by get re-evaluated in combination with company size and job complexity.

How It Differs from Ministry of Employment and Labor Standards

The Employment Permit System (E-9) under the Ministry of Employment and Labor applies the Minimum Wage Act directly, but the E-7 operates under a separate Ministry of Justice immigration standard. In other words, clearing minimum wage alone isn't enough — you have to meet the much higher GNI 80% threshold.

2. 2026 Threshold Amounts and Year-Over-Year Changes

Since per capita GNI shifts annually, the E-7 salary cutoff ticks up a little each year. Here's the rough trajectory by year.

Contract Reference Dates and When Standards Take Effect

A frequent snag in practice is the question of "which year's standard applies." Typically it isn't the filing date but rather the date the relevant year's manual takes effect. If you're submitting late in one year or early in the next — right when the new benchmark kicks in — applicants filing in early spring should be sure to redraft their contracts to match the updated GNI 80% amount to stay safe.

3. Tiered Standards by Occupation — 70%, 80%, 100%, 150%

The E-7 looks like a single category from the outside, but review standards actually vary by occupation. Here are the numbers upfront.

Distinguishing E-7-1, E-7-2, E-7-3, and E-7-4

People often refer to the E-7 as one monolithic visa, but actual review is split by sub-code.

• E-7-1 (Specialized Personnel): 85 specialist and managerial occupations. Default GNI 80% applies; top-talent track requires 1.5×–2×.
• E-7-2 (Semi-Specialized Personnel): Office support staff, duty-free shop sales staff, and similar. Salary bar tends to be set lower.
• E-7-3 (General Technical Workers): Specific trades like welders and ship painters. Minimum-wage-plus structure.
• E-7-4 (Skilled Workers Points System): Conversion path from E-9 or H-2. A blend of points-based scoring and salary requirements.

The Catch with the Top-Talent Track

Plenty of applicants ask, "Is a higher salary always an advantage?" In reality, the 1.5× or 2× GNI tracks are a trade-off: they waive or relax education and experience requirements in exchange for a higher salary floor. Flipping that around, if your credentials are already strong, there's no reason to stretch for a higher salary figure. Putting a salary the company can't realistically afford on paper only trips you up during the ability-to-pay review.

4. What Counts as Salary and What Doesn't

This is where many applicants get stuck. Even if your contract lists "annual salary of KRW 37 million," what actually gets credited depends entirely on what's inside that figure.

The Guiding Principle — Ordinary Wage

For E-7 review, the salary in scope is centered on pre-tax base pay plus fixed allowances. The baseline is whatever can be annualized as monthly pay × 12 — fixed, uniformly paid amounts.

The Pitfall People Miss Most — "Salary Includes Housing"

This is a common setup at smaller companies. The contract reads: "Annual salary KRW 36 million, housing provided." In actual review, the housing value doesn't get added to salary, so reviewers recalculate GNI 80% using only base pay plus fixed allowances. If that recomputed figure falls short, it's an immediate supplementation request.

The Comprehensive Wage System Trap

If your contract reads "monthly pay KRW 3 million (overtime included)" under a comprehensive wage system, reviewers strip out the overtime portion and count only the remaining base pay. That can cause the annual figure to plummet. If you're using a comprehensive wage structure, the safer move is to rewrite the contract to separately itemize overtime and base pay.

5. How the Minimum Wage Act Interacts with E-7 Salary Rules

The E-7 salary standard isn't directly tied to minimum wage, but in practice you have to look at both at once.

The 2026 Minimum Wage Baseline

Korea's 2026 minimum wage, once the published hourly rate is multiplied by the standard 209 working hours, gives you the monthly equivalent. At the 2025 level (an hourly rate of around KRW 10,030), that works out to roughly KRW 2.1 million per month, or about KRW 25 million a year. That's well below the GNI 80% threshold (around KRW 36 million).

So Why Does Minimum Wage Still Matter?

Two reasons.

1. An employment contract that violates the Minimum Wage Act is void on its face. Even if you clear GNI 80%, if the hourly-equivalent wage falls below the minimum, the contract itself has a legal problem.
2. Contracts with excessively long working hours may drop below minimum wage on an hourly basis. For example: a KRW 36 million salary paired with a 60-hour workweek could pull the hourly rate below the minimum.

The Review Sequence Used in Practice

6. Balancing Company Size, Revenue, and Salary During Review

A high salary alone isn't enough. Reviewers also examine whether the sponsoring company can realistically afford that salary. This is where many applications diverge.

When a Small Company Promises a Big Salary

If a company with KRW 300 million in annual revenue submits a contract promising a foreign specialist KRW 50 million a year, reviewers immediately flag it as potentially falsified or exaggerated. When the wage-to-revenue ratio is implausible, a KRW 50 million figure starts looking like a number fabricated on paper.

Comparison with Domestic Employees' Pay

Another classic sticking point. If domestic employees at the company average KRW 28 million a year, but the foreign hire is offered KRW 37 million, reviewers wonder, "If the role is that important, why didn't they pay a Korean employee more?" Conversely, paying the foreign hire far less than the domestic average is also a problem.

The Balance Range That Works in Practice

• Roughly within ±20–30% of the domestic average for the same role is the most natural range.
• The per-person labor cost as a share of annual revenue shouldn't stray too far from the industry average.
• If the sponsored foreign national's salary exceeds the CEO's or executives' compensation, you'll need a separate explanation.

7. Proving Actual Salary Payments at Extension or Change of Status

For the initial application, the contract carries the weight. But at the stay extension stage, you need to prove "you actually received that salary." This is a classic snag point for extensions.

Required Documentation at Extension

When Actual Pay Falls Short of the Contract

This is where reviewers get most sensitive. If the contract states KRW 36 million but actual deposits total only KRW 29 million for the year, it's treated as either a falsified contract or unpaid wages. Either way, it's grounds for denial of extension.

Reporting Salary Increases and Decreases

If your salary changes while you're employed, you'll need to file a change of workplace or conditions report, or attach a statement of reasons at the next extension. Even when a pay cut reflects legitimate financial difficulty, if the reduced salary slips below the GNI threshold, the extension may be denied.

8. Common Mistakes and Denial Cases

A round-up of the mistake patterns we see most often on the ground.

Mistake 1 — Bundling Housing and Meal Costs into the Salary

If the contract reads "KRW 37 million annual salary (housing and meals included)," the actual base pay recomputes to around KRW 32 million. That falls short of the GNI 80% benchmark (around KRW 36 million), triggering an immediate supplementation request.

Mistake 2 — Over-Counting Performance Bonuses and Incentives

"Monthly base KRW 2.5 million + annual performance bonus KRW 10 million" looks like KRW 40 million on paper, but review credits only the KRW 2.5 million × 12 = KRW 30 million in fixed pay, with the performance bonus stripped out. Below threshold.

Mistake 3 — Rolling Overtime Into Comprehensive Wages

If the contract reads "KRW 3.2 million per month (overtime included)," the reviewer pulls out the overtime portion and recalculates using only the residual base pay. A comprehensive wage contract without itemized overtime is almost always a net loss.

Mistake 4 — Salary Out of Scale with Company Revenue

A KRW 45 million annual salary at a company generating KRW 200 million in annual revenue. On paper the threshold is cleared, but the case gets bounced at the ability-to-pay review, with the sponsoring company itself rejected.

Mistake 5 — Salary Inversion Against Domestic Employees

Domestic staff in the same role earn KRW 2.2 million a month, while the foreign hire is offered KRW 3.1 million. Reviewers don't see this as "foreigner favoritism" — they read it as "can this company actually afford this payment?" or "is this contract only dressed up on paper?"

Mistake 6 — Cutting the Salary Too Close to the Threshold

When the GNI 80% cutoff is KRW 36 million, filing with an exact KRW 36 million salary means that a single excluded item can drop you below the line. In practice, it's safer to build in a 10–15% buffer above the threshold.

Mistake 7 — Contracts Without Working Hours or Work-Day Clauses

A contract that lists a salary but omits weekly working hours makes the hourly equivalent impossible to calculate, triggering supplementation. In some cases, "vague working conditions = suspicion of falsification" pushes the review in a worse direction.

Summary of Real Denial and Supplementation Cases

9. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1. If my contract salary lands exactly on GNI 80%, am I fine?

A. Hitting the threshold exactly is actually risky. A single excluded item during review can push you under. In practice, it's safer to build in a 10–15% buffer above the threshold. For example, when the bar is KRW 36 million, pegging the contract at KRW 39–40 million leaves room to pass even if part of a housing allowance gets stripped out.

Q2. Can I use performance bonuses or incentives to clear the GNI threshold?

A. In principle, no. Performance bonuses are variable pay without guaranteed disbursement, so they're excluded from review. If you want them to count, you need to structure them as fixed bonuses with certainty of payment — for example, "paid at least twice a year" with a "guaranteed minimum of KRW XX" in both the contract and the work rules. Language starting with "depending on company performance" is almost never recognized.

Q3. If I'm above minimum wage, does that mean I've met the E-7 salary threshold?

A. No. Minimum wage and the E-7 salary threshold are separate standards. Annualized minimum wage for 2025 comes out to roughly KRW 25 million, while E-7 GNI 80% is around KRW 36 million. You have to clear both, and the GNI benchmark is much higher. Minimum wage determines the contract's legal validity; the GNI benchmark determines whether you pass immigration review.

Q4. If the company provides housing, can the salary be lower?

A. Housing is classified as a fringe benefit and isn't folded into salary. Even if the provided housing is worth KRW 500,000 a month, it isn't added to the salary calculation, so you must meet the GNI threshold using base pay alone. Contracts that justify a lower salary on the grounds that housing is provided almost always draw a supplementation request.

Q5. What happens if the salary actually received at extension time is lower than what the contract states?

A. It's treated as either a falsified contract or unpaid wages, which can lead to extension denial. Three documents — the withholding receipt, payroll transfer records, and the insurance-reported monthly pay — all need to reconcile with the contract salary. If your salary genuinely came down due to company circumstances, first check whether the reduced figure still clears the GNI threshold; if it doesn't, you'll need a separate supplementation strategy before filing the extension. This is hard to judge on your own, so we recommend consulting your local immigration office in advance.

10. Consultation Inquiries

The E-7 salary standard isn't simply a matter of hitting a number on the surface — contract structure, the company's financials, and proof of actual payment all get weighed together. The closer you sit to the threshold, the more a single line of formatting on paper can decide the outcome.

Vision Administrative Office supports initial E-7 applications, extensions, and status changes across the board, including reviewing salary structures, redrafting employment contracts, and building documentation of the company's ability to pay.

Vision Administrative Office (VISION Administrative Office)

• Phone: 02-363-2251
• Email: 5000meter@gmail.com
• Address: (04614) 3rd Floor, Seongwoo Building, 324 Toegye-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul

Send us a draft contract along with the company's revenue materials, and we'll flag the points most likely to get caught in actual review up front.