On each certification date you hand in a form recording your job-search activity from the day after the previous certification date to that day (Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act, Art. 63(1)). Paragraph 3 of the same article leaves the standard to a ministry ordinance, and Enforcement Rule Article 87(1) lists ten things that count as active job search, while paragraph 2 lists five situations in which, “notwithstanding paragraph 1”, you are treated as not searching actively. Pick an activity and tick any situation that applies, and the checker shows whether it is on that list. It only lines your case up against the text; the centre head decides.
1. Ten activities count (Rule 87(1)) — applying for a job, an interview at a recruitment event, a centre career programme, a job confirmed to start within 30 days of the certification date, a job-search plan, and more.
2. Five situations mean no certification (Rule 87(2)) — a home-related reason for leaving that still applies, illness or injury that makes ordinary work hard, eligibility for industrial-accident sick-leave benefit, missing a set attendance day without good reason (for that period), and cases the Minister specifies.
3. Five items carry a condition — items 3, 6, 7, 8 and 10 need the Minister to specify them or the centre head to accept or refer.
Checker
Updates as you change anything. Ticking items 1–3 of paragraph 2 gives “Not certified” whatever the activity; item 4 only removes the missed period, so it is added after the result. Paragraph 2 item 5 and paragraph 1 item 10 depend on ministry notices and are not built in.
Rule 87(1) — the ten activities that count
| Item | What the text says | Note (our gloss) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Visiting a hiring business, or applying for a job by post, internet or similar | “Applying” — not the same as reading an ad |
| 2 | Taking part in a recruitment event and attending a hiring interview | An interview, not just attendance |
| 3 | Receiving vocational training etc. in cases the Minister of Employment and Labor specifies | Not every course |
| 4 | Taking part in a career-guidance programme run by the employment centre | A centre programme |
| 5 | A job is confirmed to start within 30 days of that certification date | Decree Art. 65 item 7 also names the same people for special certification |
| 6 | Attending a training facility or private academy to find work again, where the centre head accepts that no other job-search activity is needed | Both the course and the head’s acceptance |
| 7 | Taking part in community service the centre head referred, where few employers or similar labour-market conditions make job information hard to give | Volunteering you choose yourself is not this item (our reading) |
| 8 | Preparing to become self-employed as the Minister specifies | The Minister sets the standard |
| 9 | Drawing up a job-search plan with the centre’s help | Ties in with the planning support in Act Art. 44(4) |
| 10 | Cases similar to items 1–9 that the Minister specifies | The only way in for anything off the list |
The list opens with “any of the following”. The two examples we added to the checker — only reading job ads, and studying alone for a licence — do not fit the wording of items 1–9, so they show as “Not on the list”. Whether the Minister has covered them under item 10 is a matter for notices we did not read.
Rule 87(2) — the five situations that block certification
| Item | What the text says | Note (our gloss) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Left because of pregnancy, birth, childcare, caring for the old or weak, or other home reasons, where the reason is hard to regard as over | Once the reason ends, certification is possible again |
| 2 | Mental or physical conditions such as illness or injury make ordinary work hard | Sickness benefit (Act Art. 63) is separate — see the sickness benefit calculator |
| 3 | Being eligible for sick-leave benefit under Art. 52 of the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act | Stops the two benefits overlapping (our reading) |
| 4 | Not attending, without good reason, on a day the centre head set in advance for job referral or guidance (limited to the period not attended) | Only that period, not the whole claim |
| 5 | Cases similar to items 1–4 that the Minister specifies | Not built into the checker |
Paragraph 2 says such claimants are treated as “not having made active job-search efforts with the will and ability to work”, and unemployment is not certified. We read it to mean that however much activity you record, that period is not certified while one of these applies.
Five results — our examples
| Example (ours) | Result | Note (our gloss) |
|---|---|---|
| Applied to two firms through a job site | Counts as job search (item 1) | Record the applications on the form |
| Job confirmed to start 14 days after the certification date | Counts as job search (item 5, within 30 days) | 31 days falls outside item 5 |
| Computer course at a local academy | Counts if a condition is met (item 6) | It must be to find work, and the centre head must accept it |
| Only read ads on a job site | Not on the list | It takes an application to be item 1 |
| Item 1 activity, but missed a set attendance day without reason | Counts as job search · but the missed period is not certified | “Limited to the period” in para. 2 item 4 |
See also
- The day you report it — when certification dates come round: certification date calculator.
- If an interview clashes with the certification date — certification date change deadline calculator.
- Turning down a referred job or training — how long payment stops: benefit suspension calculator.
Checklist
- ☐ Note each firm, date and method as you apply
- ☐ For training or an academy course, check the Minister has specified it or the centre head accepts it
- ☐ When a job is confirmed, check it starts within 30 days of the certification date
- ☐ Don’t miss attendance days the centre sets for guidance
- ☐ If you are ill or eligible for industrial-accident sick-leave benefit, check that route first
Questions that remain
How many activities do I need per period?
Rule 87 lists what “counts”, not how often. Of the provisions we read (Act Art. 44, Decree Art. 63, Rule Art. 87), none sets a number, so we read the count as left to what the Minister specifies.
What if I write something false?
Receiving benefit by false or other wrongful means brings repayment, additional collection and criminal penalties. The arithmetic is in the repayment and additional collection calculator.
Does preparing to start a business count?
Item 8 covers “self-employment preparation activities carried out as the Minister specifies”. What counts is set by the Minister, so the checker only says “Counts if a condition is met”.
Do I have to follow what the job centre asks?
Yes — Act Art. 44(4) has the centre head take job-search measures set by decree when certifying unemployment, and the claimant must follow them unless there is a good reason. Decree Art. 67 lists six measures (checked 9 November 2026): (1) help drawing up a re-employment plan; (2) guidance and training on unemployment benefits and insurance; (3) in-depth counselling such as aptitude tests and job information; (4) coaching on using job information, CVs and interviews; (5) job information, referrals, accompanied interviews and invitations to hiring events; (6) training counselling, guidance and training orders. Item 9 in the table above (planning) ties to (1). These two articles do not say what happens if you don’t comply.
Sources
- Korea Law Information Center — Employment Insurance Enforcement Rule Arts. 84, 87 — text (in force 18 Sep 2026, Ministry of Employment and Labor Ordinance No. 479; checked 9 November 2026). Standards for job-search activity, para. 1 items 1–10 (amended 12 Jul 2010 and 17 Feb 2022), para. 2 items 1–5.
- Korea Law Information Center — Enforcement Decree Arts. 63, 65 — text (in force 18 Sep 2026, Presidential Decree No. 36588; checked 9 November 2026). Recording activity on the form, delegation of the standard, people with a job confirmed within 30 days (Art. 65 item 7).
- Korea Law Information Center — Employment Insurance Act Art. 44 — text (in force 18 Sep 2026, Act No. 21473; checked 9 November 2026). Reporting efforts to find work; the head’s planning support and job referral, and the duty to follow them (para. 4).
- Not read. The ministry notices behind para. 1 items 3, 8 and 10 and para. 2 item 5, the Work24 guidance on job-search activity, and what happens if measures are not followed. (The Art. 44(4) measures are in Decree Art. 67 — in force 18 Sep 2026, Decree No. 36588; checked 9 November 2026.)
- Our additions. The two off-list examples (reading ads, studying alone) and the “Note” column.
Where to check further
- Your local employment centre — whether this period’s activity counts, and the Minister’s standards for training and self-employment preparation.
- Work24 — the activity fields on the online certification form.
Written on 9 November 2026. The content follows the original texts; the glosses and examples are ours.
