Work Visa- getting me where I want to be
Wind and Rain blowing all over us in Houston
This seemed to be the most difficult thing to do out of this whole process. But Chad, Jamie, and I finally got our E-2 work visas!! They look so awesome and official. They even have a little golden embossing on it! We had lots of trouble with communication problems with the secretaries at the Korean Consulate in Houston, TX. They would never talk to us for more than a few minutes, never fully answered our questions, hung up on Chad several times, and accused me of being rude, when I was nothing but polite. Then once we got there the secretary was texting and messing around, being completely unprofessional, and took her sweet time to help any of us.
Yet, the other employees there were nice and polite. And the man we all interviewed with was super nice and sweet. So in the end after jumping though hoops, dealing with that rude secretary on a power trip, and having to fly all the way to Houston AND back, we got our visas. We’re official, we’re going to Seoul, South Korea, departing Monday July 19th, from Will Rogers World Airport!
Luggage: The Great Move Begins!
This is all the luggage in my guest room
What to pack, what not to pack- that is the question. Chad and I bought some large suitcases a few weeks ago now to fill them. However, according to several airlines that I have researched not only is there a weight restriction but there is also a size restriction. Each piece that goes into cargo the sum of LxWxH must be less than 62 inches and to top that off the two checked bags together must be less than 107 inches! So 3 of the 6 suitcases we bought we have to exchange for a smaller size. So another trip to Ross…. Ross is awesome by the way (for those that don’t know it’s a department store that sell merchandise at clearance prices)
Anyway we got an approximate date of departure: July 20th! But that isn’t set in stone until we get our visas. But I really only have about 3 weeks to decide what to pack. Well deodorant is a must since I’ve heard and read deodorant is stupidly expensive in Korea. (Some Koreans only use deodorant like they would perfume only to smell nice.) And I should pack some work clothes, a pair of shoes, a month’s worth of toiletries and a towel. Once I get paid I’m gonna buy lots of clothes, it won’t be hard for my since I’m half Filipino and build small like most Asians, so I probably won’t bring any winter clothes since it will be hot for my first few months there. I keep reading on other people’s blogs that it’s super hard to find C or D cup bras in Korea and when you do they are stupidly expensive. This is the first time in my life having small bosom has come as an advantage, I’ll be able to buy so many bras I’ll have one of every shade and color, haha I win. Since I’ll be in Seoul I’m sure I’ll be about to find all the comforts of home. I keep asking Chad “will they have _____ in Korea?” It’s become a little game and is getting a little crazy but I do wonder about some things. It seems the more I read stuff online the more confused I get. I guess I’ll just find out. Once I do I’m going to write the ultimate “What to Bring to Korea” List EVER! Well for sure I’m going to bring some clothes, toiletries (especially deodorant!!), stuff for Pepper cat, and my video games.
Other than that I’m not to sure yet, anyone out there have any suggestions??
Documents
Papers papers, oh these poor trees! Well it’s no lie it’s a long process to get a job teaching English in South Korea. For those that are interested in teaching make sure you have your paperwork before you start sending out your resume. It will make things move faster if you already have your paperwork! Before you can work in a foreign country you need a work visa. For me I need a E-2 work visa (E-2 is for English teachers)
But the thing is before you make money you have to have money. (Thank God for my mom, she’s been so supportive and helpful to me and Chad.) Here is the run down of the documents, how to get them and most importantly THE COST!
1.) Diploma– no cost but you have to pay off your final Bursar bill which can be a lot if you’re not careful. If you don’t want to send them you original diploma you can get it copied, notarized and apostilled which can cost over $25 so we just send our originals, you do get the originals back)
2.) 3 sealed and stamped transcripts– at OSU it didn’t cost and I got 5 just in case. You need 2 to send to your company and 1 to send to the Korea Embassy/Consulate (for those that don’t know a consulate is like a mini embassy that deals with smaller matters like visas, my closest one is in Houston)
3.) Passport– if you have one that’s great, some companies won’t even talk to you if you don’t have a passport. If you don’t have a passport you need to go to your local passport agency (usually the post office or city hall) it cost about $7 to get passport photos at Wal-Mart, $75 for the passport fee and some place charge a processing fee which we had to pay $25.
4.) Criminal Background Check- In Oklahoma it cost $15 to get the background check, this you have to get at the OSBI, then we had to go to the capitol building and get it apostilled by the Secretary of State’s office. (Apostille a way of legalizing a document for international use) Apostilling documents in Oklahoma cost $25 per document! That’s one of the most expensive in the US (yeah… thanks a lot Oklahoma…)
5.) 7 passport photos– We had to send 5 to the company we’re working for and have 2 for the Korean Consulate. (We got ours at Wal-Mart they only charged $7 for the passport photo fee and only charged per photo sheet about the price of a photo greeting card) That totaled about $9
6.) Contract with School and E-2 visa Health Statement– both were emailed to us and you just have to print out and sign. Just the cost of paper
7.) You Resume– make sure it’s good and looks nice, I’m sure somewhere in college someone taught you about resumes. (If you want resume help, I’m a total pro!)
Thus far with the paperwork above it may run you close to 200 bucks! Plus mailing these documents to your school can cost over 100 buck. So far it’s been about $300 each to get this paperwork done and sent. Not to mention the $45 visa application fee. (but the school reimburses you for that)
Chad and I are very excited to go, the company is great and they even worked out things so I can bring my cat Pepper!! Well that’s just a basic run down of the documents we had to get so we can go. But FedEx has them now and we’re on our way!!
A Photo A Day When You're Far Away 