Unpaid Salary in Korea: What Foreign Workers Should Do

Your employer has not paid your wages, overtime, or severance — on time or at all. In Korea this is a criminal matter, and foreign workers have the same protection as Korean workers regardless of visa status.

High riskLabor Standards Act (근로기준법)

Applies to

employee · freelancer · student

Quick answer: File a complaint (진정) with your local Employment & Labor Office (고용노동부 지청) — free, no lawyer needed, and available to any worker regardless of visa. Wages must generally be settled within 14 days of leaving a job. Gather your contract, payslips, work records and bank statements first.

What Korean law says

  1. ·Under the Labor Standards Act, wages must be paid directly to the worker, in full, in cash (or bank transfer), at least once a month on a fixed date.
  2. ·When a worker leaves — for any reason — the employer must pay all wages, severance and any other money owed within 14 days (Article 36). This deadline applies even if you resigned or were undocumented.
  3. ·Delayed wages accrue interest, and wilful non-payment can be punished by up to 3 years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million KRW. This makes a labor-office complaint a strong pressure point.
  4. ·Your visa status does not remove these rights: the Supreme Court has confirmed that even workers without valid status are protected by the Labor Standards Act for work already performed.

Required conditions

  1. ·You performed work for the employer (an employment relationship existed — even without a written contract).
  2. ·Wages, overtime, allowances or severance are owed and remain unpaid.
  3. ·The complaint is filed within 3 years of the wage becoming due (statute of limitations).

What to do next

  1. 1Collect evidence: employment contract, payslips, bank statements, attendance records, KakaoTalk messages, and anything showing hours worked and amounts owed.
  2. 2Try one written request to the employer (message/email stating the amount and a payment date) — this becomes evidence.
  3. 3File a complaint (진정) at your local Employment & Labor Office in person or online via the Ministry portal. Bring ID/ARC and your evidence.
  4. 4Attend the investigation meeting; the labor inspector will summon the employer and mediate. Many cases settle here.
  5. 5If unpaid after the order, apply for the Wage Claim Guarantee / small-sum litigation, or escalate to the prosecutor. Consider a labor attorney (노무사) for large amounts.

Documents to prepare

Employment contract (or offer letter/messages if none)Payslips / wage recordsBank statements showing (missing) paymentsAttendance or shift recordsChat messages about pay/hoursARC / passport

Where to go / who to contact

Local Employment & Labor Office (고용노동부 지방고용노동청/지청) — find yours via the Ministry of Employment and Labor. Interpreter support and the 1350 helpline are available.

Time limit / deadline

Employer must pay within 14 days of separation. You can file within 3 years of the wage becoming due.

Estimated cost

Filing a labor-office complaint is free. A labor attorney (노무사) is optional, typically on a success-fee basis.

Common mistakes

  1. ·Waiting too long and losing evidence (or hitting the 3-year limit).
  2. ·Assuming an undocumented/visa problem removes your right to unpaid wages — it does not.
  3. ·Quitting without any written record of hours or pay.
  4. ·Accepting a verbal promise instead of a labor-office complaint.
Original Korean legal text

근로기준법 제36조 (금품 청산) · Labor Standards Act Art. 36

사용자는 근로자가 사망 또는 퇴직한 경우에는 그 지급 사유가 발생한 때부터 14일 이내에 임금, 보상금, 그 밖의 모든 금품을 지급하여야 한다. 다만, 특별한 사정이 있을 경우에는 당사자 사이의 합의에 의하여 기일을 연장할 수 있다.

근로기준법 제43조 (임금 지급) · Labor Standards Act Art. 43

임금은 통화(通貨)로 직접 근로자에게 그 전액을 지급하여야 한다. 임금은 매월 1회 이상 일정한 날짜를 정하여 지급하여야 한다.

Sources

These are official Korean government sites — mostly in Korean. Need help in your language? Use the multilingual helplines below, or tap “Get professional help”.

Multilingual helplines: 1345 Immigration (Vietnamese) · 1350 Labor · 1588-0560 Tax (English) · 120 city services

Last checked: 2026-07-09

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Unpaid Salary in Korea: What Foreign Workers Should Do — KVBiz Law