EPS-TOPIK Passing Scores and Selection — Why You Can Fail Even with More Than 60 Points

More than 60 points still does not mean you passed

If you cleared the minimum score but your name is not on the list of passers, the marking is not wrong. The exam was designed that way. This structure can decide an entire year.

EPS-TOPIK has 40 questions worth 100 points and lasts 50 minutes, and the minimum score you must clear differs by sector. It is 60 for manufacturing, 45 for other sectors, and 30 Pass/Fail for the special fisheries track. Those are the figures posted on the administering body's page as of August 29, 2026.

What comes next is the problem. The assessment is norm-referenced. HRD Korea states that passers are decided among candidates who score at or above the minimum for their sector, in score order, up to the planned intake. Clearing the minimum earns you a place in the ranking; it does not mean you were selected. Exam dates and planned intake numbers are set separately for each country and round, so first check how many people are planned for selection in your round.

There is more than 1 exam. Selection uses the score-based foreign worker selection system (외국인력 선발포인트제): the Korean-language proficiency test is stage 1, and the skills test and job-capacity assessment is stage 2. Only stage 1 passers can take stage 2, but stage 2 is not optional; if you do not attend, you are excluded from final selection. Once you clear the Korean-language test, keep going and schedule the stage 2 skills test as part of the same process.

There is one more point to watch. MOEL and HRD Korea stated on February 9, 2026 that they planned to raise the minimum passing score for every sector. The revised scores have not yet been announced, and 60, 45, and 30 remain in effect as of August 29, 2026. Before registering, check the notice for your round once more to see whether the scores have changed.

This is not the TOPIK you know

If you already have a TOPIK score report, pause here. There are two exams with similar names, overseen by two different ministries, and the score from one does not substitute for the other.

Regular TOPIK is administered by the National Institute for International Education, under the Ministry of Education. EPS-TOPIK does not appear in the institute's TOPIK information. A TOPIK score is not an EPS-TOPIK pass and does not replace one.

Even the type of result is different. Regular TOPIK awards levels: TOPIK I covers levels 1–2, TOPIK II covers levels 3–6, and Speaking covers levels 1–6; it is delivered through PBT and IBT. EPS-TOPIK awards no level. It produces only a score for ranking candidates.

EPS-TOPIK has been administered by HRD Korea, under MOEL, since August 2005. Its stated purpose is to assess Korean-language ability and understanding of Korean society as an objective selection criterion for compiling the foreign jobseeker roster.

The delivery method is the same in every country. Every round uses CBT or UBT, with no PBT. Every round on the 2026 schedule, both general and special and in every listed country, is marked CBT. If you prepared for a paper test, start practising answering questions on a screen.

What appears on the exam

The exam is simple in structure: 40 questions, 100 points, and 50 minutes, all in 4-option multiple-choice format. For listening, you hear recorded audio and choose one of 4 answers.

Reading covers vocabulary and grammar, information in practical materials, and reading comprehension, including industrial safety signs. Listening covers written representations of sounds, visual materials, and questions based on conversations or stories. Safety signs appear on the exam, so do not skip the industrial safety section of the textbook.

There are three tested domains: Korean-language ability, understanding of Korean culture, and industrial safety and health.

A colour-vision assessment (색각평가) follows immediately after the language test. Do not stand up as soon as the test ends.

The second exam decides selection

The process does not end with the Korean-language test. Under the score-based foreign worker selection system, the Korean-language proficiency test is only stage 1; the skills test and job-capacity assessment is a separate stage 2.

All sectors operate on a total of 205 points. Stage 1 is worth 100 points, stage 2 is worth 100, and 5 job-capacity-assessment bonus points are added: 2 for work experience, 1 for completing training, 1 for education, and 1 for a national qualification. Remember that the Korean-language test and stage 2 skills test carry the same number of points.

The special fisheries track has a different structure. The total is 200 points, but stage 1 is Pass/Fail and carries no points; stage 2 is worth 110 points and the bonus is worth 90. The bonus is divided into 30 for work experience, 20 for a qualification, 20 for training, and 20 for education. If you apply through the special fisheries track, EPS-TOPIK is a gate, not a score.

The skills test consists of a physical-fitness assessment, a Korean-language interview, and basic skills.

The bonus points have thresholds. You need at least 1 year of work experience, at least 120 hours of training, an associate degree or higher, and a national qualification. Then one line removes a great deal of hope: qualifications obtained abroad are not recognised. If you expected bonus points for a qualification from your home country, remove them from your calculation.

From 2026, the interview accounts for a larger share of the skills-test score. Questions on understanding work instructions and the names of sector-specific tools increased, and in-depth safety questions were newly added. MOEL and HRD Korea stated on February 9, 2026 that these changes were shared with the sending countries so candidates could prepare. Include practice saying tool names and safety rules in Korean when you prepare for the interview.

Who may register, and what closes the door

Some conditions stop you at the door regardless of your exam ability. Check them before registering.

You must be aged 18 through 39, and it is easy to miss that the reference date is the first day of registration, not the exam date. Your age on the first day of registration is what counts. The Philippines has a range 1 year narrower, ages 18 through 38, and this is the only published country exception.

You must have no criminal conviction resulting in imprisonment or a heavier sentence. This does not mean every offence disqualifies you; the condition is based on the severity of the sentence.

You must have no history of deportation or ordered departure from Korea, and no disqualifying restriction on departure imposed by your home country.

There is also a limit on time already spent in Korea. You must not have stayed for 5 years or more on E-9, 5 years or more on E-10, or 5 years or more across the two combined. If your employment-activity period was extended under Article 18-2(2) of the Act on the Employment of Foreign Workers (외국인고용법), the limit is 6 years. If you have worked in Korea before, add up your periods of stay first.

Cheating does not end with that single exam. If caught, your test is voided and you cannot take EPS-TOPIK for 4 years from the date of the penalty. Carrying or using a mobile phone during the test and proxy test-taking are both prohibited. HRD Korea accepts anonymous reports at cleaneps@hrdkorea.or.kr. Deal with your phone before entering the test venue.

Registration and the exam fee

HRD Korea writes and administers the exam, but the office you actually deal with is your country's sending agency (송출기관). Registration, fee collection, cancellation, and refunds are all handled by the sending agency. If you cancel during the registration period, you receive a full refund, so act before the period ends if your circumstances change.

Registration in person and individual registration are the rule. Registration through a representative and group registration are prohibited, so do not accept an offer from someone to register for you.

The exam fee is 28 USD or the equivalent in local currency. The Philippines, at 24 USD, is the only published exception.

The textbook is free, and last year's questions will not return

This is where you separate what deserves your money from what does not. HRD Korea makes all official study materials available free of charge.

The EPS-TOPIK Standard Korean Language Textbook (EPS-TOPIK 한국어표준교재) was fully revised for the first time in 11 years. It was announced on December 23, 2024, distributed free as booklets to sending countries, and made available as a free download. A public sample question book with listening audio is released with it. Self-study textbooks are available in Korean, Nepali, Bengali, Khmer, Vietnamese, Burmese, Filipino (English), Thai, Sinhala, Uzbek, and Lao. If your language is on this list, get that edition first.

But do not mistake the public question book for past exam questions. Questions have been 100% non-disclosed since 2013. HRD Korea states that the exam uses 100% non-disclosed questions based on the Standard Korean Language Textbook, and that the public question book is for learning the question types; the same questions will not appear. Since the second half of 2025, the exam has been based on the new standard textbook.

That makes the ‘real past questions’ sold by brokers a product with nothing to buy. No questions have been disclosed since 2013, and the textbook that actually sets the exam standard is free. Keep that money for preparation for the second exam, which is worth the same as stage 1.

What passing gives you, and what it does not

Passing makes you eligible for the foreign jobseeker roster. That is as far as it goes. Employers choose workers from that roster through the Employment Center (고용센터), so passing does not guarantee a job.

Look at the full sequence at once. It runs through the stage 1 Korean-language proficiency test, stage 2 skills test and job-capacity assessment, final selection, and a health examination; the health examination comes after the exam, not before it. You then submit a job application (구직신청서) during the designated period. Your sending agency compiles the jobseeker roster (구직자 명부) and sends it to HRD Korea, which converts it into Korean, checks the basic requirements, and certifies and manages it. The Employment Center recommends workers, the employer selects, and a standard labor contract (표준근로계약서) is concluded under Article 9(1) of the Act. Once the employer obtains a Confirmation of Visa Issuance (사증발급인정서), the worker applies for an E-9 visa at a Korean embassy or consulate. After entry, you receive at least 16 hours of post-entry employment training for foreign workers (외국인 취업교육) over 2 nights and 3 days before placement at a workplace.

The employment training has a deadline: within 15 days of entry. For workers re-entering after their employment-activity period expired, it can be shortened to under 16 hours.

Here is 1 warning. Anyone other than an Employment Center who intervenes in selection, placement, or hiring faces up to 1 year's imprisonment or a fine of up to ₩10,000,000. Article 29 of the Act sets that penalty for breach of Article 8(6). If someone outside an Employment Center offers to get you selected, do not accept.

The Special EPS-TOPIK is an exam on a different scale

This exam is for people who have already worked in Korea, and almost every number is different. If you prepare to the general exam standard, even the point allocation will be wrong.

It has 40 questions worth 200 points and lasts 50 minutes. Reading has 20 questions, split into 8 job-specific and 12 common questions, worth 100 points in 25 minutes; listening also has 20 questions worth 100 points in 25 minutes. It is 4-option multiple choice and delivered through CBT or UBT.

The passing score is at least 120 out of 200, equivalent to 60 out of 100. Passers are selected according to the number allocated to each country, and that allocation is set in proportion to the number of candidates from the country.

This is the only place across the entire EPS where a regular TOPIK level carries weight. Bonus points available only on the Special exam are 5, 10, 20, or 25 points for returnee resettlement-support education or training (귀국예정자 재정착 지원 교육·훈련); 10 points for departing after seasonal work ends; and 20 points for a worker at a U-turn firm (유턴기업 근로자) who holds regular TOPIK level 3 or higher.

Designated referral (지정알선), which lets a Special exam passer return directly to their last Korean workplace, is available only if they worked there for at least 1 year and took the exam in the same sector as that workplace. The moment you take the exam in another sector, designated referral disappears, so do not change sectors if you already know where you plan to return.

There is one point to settle before registering: the eligible age. HRD Korea's Special EPS-TOPIK page states ages 18 through 39, while easylaw.go.kr, citing HRD Korea's operations guide and current as of July 15, 2026, states ages 19 through 39. Both state ages 18 through 38 for the Philippines. If you are 18, confirm your eligibility with your sending agency before paying the fee.

There are two re-entry routes, and only one requires an exam

These two routes are constantly confused, but set them apart and the difference is one exam and five months.

The committed-worker re-entry special provision under Article 18-4 of the Act has no Korean-language exam. It returns you to the same employer, allows re-entry 1 month after departure, exempts you from post-entry employment training, and is allowed only once. In return, you need a labor contract of at least 1 year effective from the date work begins after re-entry, and the workplace must be designated by the Foreign Workforce Policy Committee (외국인력정책위원회).

The Special EPS-TOPIK re-entry program (특별한국어시험 재입국제도) requires the Special EPS-TOPIK. It is for E-9 workers who were re-employed and then departed voluntarily before their period of stay expired, and applies to departures on or after January 1, 2010. Re-entry comes 6 months after departure, and there is no exemption from employment training.

If neither route applies, Article 18-3 of the Act applies. A worker who worked in Korea and departed cannot be employed again under the Act until 6 months have passed from the date of departure.

The E-9 guide explains the requirements for both routes and the filing deadline that decides whether the 1-month route is available. Read it before you depart.