Footprints Recruiting

Getting access to an English speaking doctor is Korea is really important when you are sick and looking for some comfort or when you have an issue and you need to understand what the heck is going on. The Foreign or Internetional Medical Clinics listed below will all have English speaking doctors ready for you AND the cost should be covered by your national medical insurance.

MAKE SURE YOU HAVE COVERAGE

First things first - your contract says you will have coverage so that means you have coverage and you don't need to worry about it.

DON'T ASSUME YOU HAVE COVERAGE

Your coverage will not start until you are legally registered in the country. With the visa regulations and medical tests now in place for teaching visas in Korea this could take 30 days to 3 months. YOU ARE NOT COVERED AT THIS TIME.

We strongly encourage ALL teachers to get extended medical coverage for expatriots. click here to learn more about extended medical in Korea.

In 2008 sadly a foreign teacher and his girlfriend died in an apartment fire. The young man's medical bill reached 77,000,000 Won (about $88,000USD at the time). Footprints Head Office and many Footprints Teachers and other teachers and friends supported the donation initiative and last we heard approximately $60,000 was raised. Please be responsible. Please get extended medical insurance BEFORE you go. The minimum duration for sign up is 90 days, you can sign up before you go or even after you arrive. Get the coverage.

Also, your school may not actually get the coverage for you. You should actually receive a card to show you are registered. Once you have your national residency card or your alien identification card (both the same thing just different names), ask your director or head teacher to tell you more about the national medical plan and make sure you have some proof that you are on the plan.

Too many schools do not enroll you to save a bit of extra Won. Not wise. Your salary should be taxed a fixed percentage for the national coverage and then you should be set should anything go wrong.

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, we still strongly encourage you to get the extended medical coverage recommended by Footprints. We've been at this since 1995, we have a pretty good sense of what's best for teachers by now.