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EPS-TOPIK: the test, the minimum scores and the skills test

From the Korean edition of HRDK's EPS-TOPIK pages, read on October 14, 2026.

EPS-TOPIK at a glance

What it is
EPS-TOPIK is the Korean test of Korea's Employment Permit System for the E-9 work visa, open to people of the 17 sending countries aged 18 to 39 who meet HRDK's other conditions.
The test
40 multiple-choice questions in 50 minutes, reading and listening, for 100 points — set from HRDK's NEW Standard Korean Textbook at every sitting from August 1, 2025.
Who passes
No fixed pass score: HRDK takes candidates at or above their industry's lowest score — 60 in manufacturing, 45 in others, a pass/fail 30 in fisheries — in order of score, up to the number selected. A skills test follows.
Test dates
There is no worldwide date. HRDK lists each country's rounds and tells candidates to follow their own country's exam notice.

This page has no test dates or results for any country, and does not host HRDK's textbook or questions.

Who can take the EPS-TOPIK?

HRDK sets these conditions, and a candidate must meet all of them.

Age
Aged 18 to 39.
Criminal record
No record of a prison sentence (with or without labour) or a heavier one.
Deportation
Never deported or ordered out of Korea.
Departure
No restriction on departure that disqualifies.
E-9 stay
Has not stayed in Korea for 5 years or more on an E-9 visa.
E-10 stay
Has not stayed in Korea for 5 years or more on an E-10 visa.
Both together
Has not stayed in Korea for 5 years or more on E-9 and E-10 visas added together.
HRDK's wording, in Korean
  1. 만 18세 이상 39세 이하일 것
  2. 금고 이상의 범죄경력이 없을 것
  3. 과거 대한민국에서 강제 퇴거·출국된 경력이 없을 것
  4. 출국에 제한(결격사유)이 없을 것
  5. 비전문취업(E-9) 체류자격으로 대한민국에 5년 이상 체류하지 아니한 자
  6. 선원취업(E-10) 체류자격으로 대한민국에 5년 이상 체류하지 아니한 자
  7. 비전문취업(E-9)과 선원취업(E-10) 체류자격 기간을 합산하여 대한민국에 5년 이상 체류하지 아니한 자

The 17 sending countries

  • Uzbekistan
  • Cambodia
  • Pakistan
  • Kyrgyzstan
  • Bangladesh
  • Nepal
  • Sri Lanka
  • Vietnam
  • Myanmar (Burma)
  • Thailand
  • Philippines
  • Indonesia
  • Mongolia
  • China
  • Timor-Leste
  • Laos
  • Tajikistan

EPS-TOPIK is a separate test from TOPIK, and gives no TOPIK level.

What TOPIK levels mean

What is on the EPS-TOPIK?

The EPS-TOPIK has 40 multiple-choice questions, each with 4 options, in 50 minutes, for 100 points, taken on a computer or a tablet: everyday Korean, the Korean used at work, Korean workplace culture and workplace safety.

The EPS-TOPIK's reading and listening sections
SectionQuestions and pointsTime
Reading20 questions, 50 points25 minutes
Listening20 questions, 50 points25 minutes

What it tests, and from which book

Reading tests
Vocabulary and grammar, practical information such as signs and notices, and reading comprehension.
Listening tests
Sounds and spelling, pictures and photos, and conversations or short talks.
Textbook
Every EPS-TOPIK held from August 1, 2025 is set from HRDK's NEW Standard Korean Textbook (HRDK announced the new textbook on December 20, 2024).
Questions
HRDK has not published its questions in advance since 2013; its sample questions show the format and do not appear on a real test.

What score do you need on the EPS-TOPIK?

HRDK uses relative evaluation: it sets a lowest score for each industry and selects candidates at or above it in order of score, up to the number to be selected. Reaching the lowest score alone is not a pass.

Lowest score on the EPS-TOPIK, by industry

Manufacturing
60 of 100
Other industries
45 of 100
Fisheries (pass/fail)
30 of 100

HRDK raised the manufacturing and other-industry scores for 2026, from 55 and 40 (notice of March 6, 2026).

The EPS-TOPIK is the first round of HRDK's points system for selecting workers. The second round is the skills test, and job-capacity points are added on top.

All industries

First round, EPS-TOPIK
100
Second round, skills test
100
Job-capacity points
up to 5
Total
205

Fisheries exception

First round, EPS-TOPIK
pass/fail
Second round, skills test
110
Job-capacity points
up to 90
Total
200

A score out of 200 belongs to the Special EPS-TOPIK, and the fisheries points total is also 200; the general EPS-TOPIK is out of 100.

What is the EPS-TOPIK skills test?

The skills test is the second round, for those who passed the EPS-TOPIK: a physical test, a single basic work task for the industry and a Korean interview, as HRDK's notice of March 6, 2026 sets it for 2026.

Physical test
30 points (40 in fisheries): grip strength, back strength, height and weight are measured, and the burpee test is the only cardio task.
Interview
50 points: self-introduction, basic conversation, naming 5 work tools and following 5 work instructions, basic job skills, safety pictograms, and 2 in-depth questions on industrial safety.
Basic work task
20 points: a single task for the industry, shown in HRDK's skills-test guidebook. The task common to every industry (inserting pins) is temporarily not held.

Changes for 2026

HRDK's notice of March 6, 2026 moved points from the basic work task (40 to 20) to the interview (30 to 50).

Job-capacity points

What earns job-capacity points
In the industry: work of 1 year or more (fisheries: 6 months or more), 120 hours or more of training, a college diploma or higher (fisheries: a fisheries high school or higher) from a related department, graduated or about to graduate, or a Korean national qualification. E-8 seasonal work in Korea of 5 months or more earns 1 of the 2 experience points.
Not counted
A qualification earned outside Korea; licences unrelated to the work (driving, language, professional); work in sales, office support, teaching, public service outside technical posts, or simple unskilled work; unrelated training or study. Teaching the industry's own skills counts.

HRDK: interview reference material for the 2026 skills test (Korean PDF)HRDK: skills-test page (Korean; it still shows the earlier test)

When is the next EPS-TOPIK in my country?

There is no worldwide EPS-TOPIK date. HRDK posts each country's rounds by industry — registration days, test start and result day — and many rows read “Undecided” until they are set. HRDK tells candidates to follow the exam notice of their own country.

Your country's overseas-employment agency announces registration. HRDK's Korean registration page lists each agency with its website, with the agency names in English.

Colour vision
HRDK opened a colour-vision self-test on August 26, 2026, to use before registering; HRDK says it does not replace a medical or official diagnosis.

HRDK: test schedule by countryHRDK: test-date noticesHRDK: sending agencies and their websites (Korean page)

How do you register for the EPS-TOPIK, and what does it cost?

You register through the sending agency in your own country, in person and for yourself as a rule: HRDK does not accept registration by an agent or a group.

Fee
$28 or the same in local money; $24 in the Philippines.
Refund
If you cancel within the registration period, the sending agency refunds the fee in full. An applicant found ineligible can be refunded even after the period.
Your name
Write your name and birth date exactly as in your passport: if they differ, entry to Korea can be refused even after a pass.
Cheating
Cheating bars a person from the EPS-TOPIK for 4 years from the day of the sanction; carrying a phone during the test counts.
Reporting fraud
HRDK runs a centre for reports of cheating and organised fraud around the selection tests, and keeps the reporter's identity secret: cleaneps@hrdkorea.or.kr.

What happens after you pass the EPS-TOPIK?

HRDK runs the first steps and posts their lists; the rest are from the Employment Permit System site of Korea's Ministry of Employment and Labor, which describes them for employers.

  1. HRDK lists who passed the EPS-TOPIK as skills-test candidates; they take the skills test.
  2. Those selected go on the job-seeker roster.
  3. An employer who could not hire in Korea gets 3 candidates per vacancy from the job centre, or chooses and interviews from the roster.
  4. The standard contract reaches you through your country's sending agency, and you confirm it.
  5. The employer obtains a certificate for your visa; you receive the E-9 visa.
  6. You travel with the sending agency; the contract takes effect on the day you enter Korea.
  7. Employment training of at least 16 hours, paid by the employer.

Lists and your score on HRDK's site

Skills-test candidatesFinal passersYour scoreThe hiring steps (Korean page)

What is the Special EPS-TOPIK?

The Special EPS-TOPIK is for workers who left Korea voluntarily within their permitted stay and want to be hired again. It is out of 200 points, not 100.

Who
A worker who went home voluntarily within the stay, on or after January 1, 2010 (G-1 holders included). If the return was not voluntary, the test is void whatever the score.
Age
Aged 18 to 39; 18 to 38 in the Philippines.
Selection
120 points or more, then each country's number, set yearly from its share of applicants. A worker with 1 year or more at the last workplace who sits the test in that workplace's industry and passes can be placed there again.
Test format, bonus points and other conditions
Other conditions
The general test's other conditions apply; the 5-year limit on E-9 and E-10 stay added together becomes 6 years where the employment period was extended under the Foreign Workers Employment Act.
Test
40 questions in 50 minutes, on a computer or a mobile device: reading 100 points, listening 100. In manufacturing, 8 reading questions come from 8 job categories.
Bonus points
5, 10, 20, or 25 for resettlement training before return; 10 for leaving when seasonal work ends (a worker who moved over from seasonal work); 20 for a U-turn company worker with TOPIK level 3 or above.

HRDK: About the Special EPS-TOPIK (Korean)

What does HRDK publish for EPS-TOPIK study?

HRDK publishes its study material free on its own site; this page links to it rather than copying it.

NEW Standard Korean Textbook, with audioSample questions, with audioSelf-study books and e-booksSkills-test guidebook

HRDK revised part of Textbook 2 (lesson 33) on June 22, 2026; copies downloaded before then are out of date.

Sources

An independent page, not HRDK's. Check HRDK's page and your own country's notice before you register or pay anyone.

Where HRDK's Korean and English editions differ

This page follows the Korean edition of HRDK's site; where another source says something else, both are here.

Lowest scores
HRDK's Korean page gives the lowest EPS-TOPIK score for each industry; its English page mentions a lowest score per industry but gives no figure.
Refund
HRDK's Korean page says an applicant found ineligible can be refunded even after the registration period; its English page says such an applicant is not refunded after the registration period.
Length of stay
HRDK's Korean page bars a stay of 5 years or more; its English page says “more than 5 years”.
Cheating ban
HRDK's rules page gives 4 years from the sanction; its English application guide still says 2 years.

Where HRDK's skills page or a country's notice differs

Skills test
HRDK's skills-test page still shows the earlier test (inserting pins for everyone, and a cardio task drawn at random each round from several); its notice of March 6, 2026 changed the test for 2026, and this page follows the notice.
Uzbekistan, 2026
Uzbekistan's Migration Agency set the upper age at 40 for its 2026 round, said that those who pass the Korean test and the skills test stay in the job-seeker pool for 2 years, and treated colour-vision deficiency as a fail whatever the score. Follow your own country's notice.

The pages this one was written from