Not a Sincere Worker? How to Try EPS Again After Going Home

If you left Korea at least 6 months ago, are 39 or younger and have never stayed illegally, you can start again with the EPS-TOPIK. There is also a special exam just for returnees.

✓ Last verified 2026-10-09📎 Sources 7

At a glance

You may not get the sincere worker exception (going back to the same company 1 month after you leave). You can still use general re-entry. The condition is that 6 months have passed from the day you left Korea (Foreign Workers Employment Act, Article 18-3).
On the Korean side, job seekers must be 18 to 39 years old, have no prison sentence or heavier (금고, prison without forced labor, or worse), and have no history of deportation or departure order. The Nepal notice adds more conditions: no history of illegal stay, less than 5 years in total on E-9 and E-10, no travel ban from the Nepal government, and no color blindness or color weakness.
The steps are the same as your first time. EPS-TOPIK → skills and competency test → job application (roster) → a company chooses you → employment contract → visa → pre-departure training.
There is a separate Special EPS-TOPIK only for returnees. It is for people who worked under EPS on or after 1 January 2010 and went home legally before their stay period ended. You can apply only if your name is on the HRD Korea list.
The sincere worker system is explained in Sincere worker re-entry. This guide is for people who could not meet those conditions.

Who is this for?

People who completed 4 years 10 months but changed workplaces, so they did not get the sincere worker exception.
People who were not re-hired and went home after working only 3 years.
People whose employer did not apply for a re-entry employment permit before they left.
People who want to work in Korea again and are still 39 or younger.

Who this is not for: people who had a period of illegal (undocumented) stay, people who left after a deportation order or a departure order, and people who received a prison sentence or heavier. For these people, EPS re-entry is difficult. If you have a period of undocumented stay, read The real cost of undocumented stay before you leave, and check the voluntary departure steps first.

Sincere worker re-entry vs general re-entry

Item	Sincere worker exception	General re-entry
Waiting time after leaving	1 month	6 months
Who starts the process	The employer applies at the 고용센터 (Job Center) before you leave	You apply for the EPS-TOPIK in Nepal
Korean language test	Not needed	Take it again (general or Special EPS-TOPIK)
Foreign worker employment training	Not needed	Take it again (16 hours after arrival)
Company you go to	Same company (employer's request)	You go on the roster and a new company chooses you
History of changing workplaces	As a rule, you must have none (rules are softer if it was not your fault)	Does not matter
Number of times	Only once	Possible within the age limit and the 5-year stay limit
Time it takes	1–2 months	Depends on how often exams are announced: several months to more than 1 year

Steps (based on the Nepal EPS Korea Section)

Before you leave Korea — Collect your 출국만기보험 (departure guarantee insurance), 국민연금 반환일시금 (national pension lump-sum refund) and any unpaid 퇴직금 (severance pay) difference (Preparing to leave and return home). Report your planned departure at the 고용센터 to leave a legal departure record. This record is the basis for your right to re-enter.
Check the notice — Look for EPS-TOPIK notices on epsnepal.gov.np and in the EPS Section Nepal app. The general exam and the Special exam for returnees are announced separately. In 2025, applications for the general exam were 11–16 August. Applications for the Special exam were 30 March – 1 April (exam 1–3 June, results 13 June). The dates change every year, so always follow the notice.
Apply online — Apply at eoers.epsnepal.gov.np. You need a scan of your passport information page (JPG, 100KB or less), a photo with a white background (ears must show, 15KB or less), an email address and a mobile phone. The exam fee is 28 US dollars (paid in Nepali rupees). Choose one sector: manufacturing or agriculture/livestock.
Take the EPS-TOPIK (UBT) — This is a tablet exam. The general exam has 20 reading and 20 listening questions, 25 minutes each, 100 points in total. The Special exam has 40 questions in 50 minutes, 200 points in total. Follow that year's notice for the exact format.
Second round: skills test and competency test — Only people who pass take this. It includes a fitness test, basic skills and a Korean interview. You must pass both tests before you can fill in the Job Application.
Roster registration and waiting — When a Korean employer chooses you from the roster, you get a Labour Contract. You check the contract and sign it at the Nepal EPS Center. There is no fixed waiting time.
Visa, pre-departure training, arrival — Certificate of Confirmation of Visa Issuance (사증발급인정서, CCVI) → visa → pre-departure training → arrival in Korea → 16 hours of employment training in Korea → placement at the company.

What to prepare

A valid Nepali passport (if your passport information and application information do not match, you cannot take the exam)
Records of your past stay in Korea: copy of your 외국인등록증 (alien registration card), old passport with departure stamp, copies of your employment permit and 근로계약서 (employment contract)
Proof of your departure report and departure guarantee insurance payment record (these help prove you went home legally)
Citizenship certificate (नागरिकता), email and mobile phone
Special exam applicants: check that your name is on the HRD Korea returnee list (ask the EPS Center)
Korean study materials: the EPS-TOPIK standard textbook is free at eps.hrdkorea.or.kr (Exam guide)

Be careful

The 6 months count from "the day you left Korea." Write down the day you got on the plane. Before 6 months pass, you cannot work on E-9 again in any way.
Age is decided by a birth date range based on the notice date. For the 2025 general exam, it was people born from 1985-08-12 to 2007-08-11. If your 39th birthday is close, do not wait for the next notice. Take the earliest exam.
The Nepal notice has a condition of less than 5 years in total on E-9 and E-10. Ask the EPS Center directly whether you can complete 4 years 10 months twice, together with the rule "not more than two employment periods." This guide does not include anything that has not been confirmed.
Going home legally is the key. If you stay even one day past your stay period, you lose the right to take the Special exam. You also fail the "no history of illegal stay" condition for the general exam.
No brokers. EPS is a government-to-government (G2G) system. Any offer like "Pay money and we will move you up the roster" or "We can send you without an exam" is always a scam. The only official channels are the Nepal EPS Center and the eoers website.
Even if you are on the roster, you cannot enter Korea unless a company chooses you. During that time, you may pass the age limit or your score may expire. Check how long the roster stays valid in the notice and with the EPS Center.
Even after re-entry, the E-7-4 stay requirement (4 years) adds up your E-9, E-10 and H-2 stays from the last 10 years. So your earlier stay may still count. Check this in the E-7-4 guide.

Frequently asked questions

Q. I changed workplaces twice. If I cannot be a sincere worker, is it all over? A. No. After 6 months you can come back through general re-entry. You must take the Korean exam and the employment training again, and you will get a new company.

Q. Who takes the Special EPS-TOPIK? A. Nepali people who worked under EPS on or after 1 January 2010, went home legally before their stay period ended, and are on the list sent by HRD Korea. Compared with the general exam, it has the same number of questions but more time (50 minutes), and you compete only with other returnees.

Q. Can I visit Korea on a tourist visa during the 6 months? A. The re-entry limit is about "working." Whether you can enter for other purposes depends on the visa type and the immigration check, so this guide does not give a definite answer. Ask 1345 or the Korean Embassy in Nepal.

Q. My old company wants me back. Can I go to that company through general re-entry? A. In the general process, the employer chooses from the roster. An employer can name a specific worker and bring them back only under the sincere worker exception. But it is possible that the employer will choose you from the roster.

Q. How long does the whole process take? A. There is no fixed time. It goes through the exam notice cycle, passing, waiting on the roster and visa issuance, so it can take several months to more than 1 year. The best way to save time is to start studying Korean during the 6-month wait.

Where to get help

Organization	Contact	What they help with
EPS Korea Section, Department of Foreign Employment (네팔 해외고용부), Nepal	epsnepal.gov.np · EPS Section Nepal app	Exam notices, eligibility, roster, employment contracts
EPS online application	eoers.epsnepal.gov.np	Exam application, results
한국산업인력공단 (HRD Korea) EPS	eps.hrdkorea.or.kr	EPS-TOPIK textbooks, information about the system
Employment Permit System website (고용허가제 누리집)	eps.go.kr	Information on the Korean side of the process
외국인종합안내센터 (Immigration Contact Center, Korea)	1345	Questions about re-entry before you leave (Nepali available)
고용노동부 (Ministry of Employment and Labor) Customer Center	1350	Departure report, checking sincere worker requirements
Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Nepal (주네팔 대한민국대사관)	On the Ministry of Foreign Affairs overseas missions website (overseas.mofa.go.kr), choose 'Nepal'	Questions about visa issuance

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Legal basis

외국인근로자의 고용 등에 관한 법률 제18조의3(재입국 취업의 제한) — 출국한 날부터 6개월이 지나지 않으면 재취업 불가 (Act on the Employment of Foreign Workers, Article 18-3, Limits on working again after re-entry: you cannot work again until 6 months have passed from the day you left Korea)
외국인근로자의 고용 등에 관한 법률 제18조의4(재입국 취업 제한의 특례) — 성실근로자 1개월 (Act on the Employment of Foreign Workers, Article 18-4, Special exception to the re-entry limits: 1 month for sincere workers)
외국인근로자의 고용 등에 관한 법률 시행령 제12조(외국인구직자 명부의 작성) — 18세 이상 39세 이하, 금고 이상 형·강제퇴거·출국명령 이력 없을 것 (Enforcement Decree of the Act on the Employment of Foreign Workers, Article 12, Making the foreign job seeker roster: age 18 to 39; no prison sentence or heavier, and no history of deportation or departure order)

Sources

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