What can and can't I do with a D-9 Trade and Business Management visa?

With D-9 (Trade and Business Management), you can run a company, do trade, and run a for-profit business. You can also install, operate, and repair export equipment, and supervise ship building and industrial equipment manufacturing. Work outside this scope, especially taking a job somewhere else, needs separate confirmation. One stay period is up to 2 years at a time.

What you can do

• Run a company, do trade, and run a for-profit business (for example, a trader who received a trade business ID number from the Korea International Trade Association (한국무역협회))
• Be dispatched or invited to a company that imported machines or industrial equipment, and provide technical help for installation, operation, and maintenance
• Be dispatched to supervise ship building or industrial equipment manufacturing (executives, senior managers, specialized technicians, etc.)
• Attend elementary, middle, high school, or university, as long as it does not harm your original purpose of stay (no separate permit is needed within your stay period)
• Among investors (D-7, D-8, D-9), those who are full-time directors or higher at a Korean company can give lectures at a university for up to 90 days (you need a short-term employment C-4-5 permit for activities outside your status, and you must submit a recommendation letter from the university president, etc.)

⚠️ What you can't do or must be careful about

• For for-profit activity or a job outside your permitted scope, you first need a permit for activities outside your status. Do not do it without a permit.
• To give lectures regularly at a university for more than 90 days, the general procedure is not enough, and you need Headquarters approval.
• Dispatch types (equipment installation, ship or equipment supervision) must be essential specialist staff sent by the head office or the investor. Permits are restricted for people hired directly in Korea and for people who are not executives, senior managers, or experts.
• Permits are also restricted if you receive a considerable fee from a Korean importer for installing or repairing imported machines.

💡 When your workplace changes

D-9 is not a for-profit status, so a workplace change is handled by reporting a change of alien registration information, not by a workplace change "permit." When you move within the same affiliated company group, submit a dispatch order or a certificate of employment (issued by the head office), and a ship order contract or an equipment import contract. For ship building and equipment manufacturing supervision (D-9-3), you can move by change report even if the company is not an affiliate.

If you are not sure whether your work is within the D-9 scope, check first with HiKorea (hikorea.go.kr) or the Immigration Contact Center (외국인종합안내센터) (1345).