Pension Withdraw in Uncertain Circumstances

[modalsaliency]

Yes, it's another pension question. Sorry. I've read through the other threads and haven't seen this addressed.

Essentially, due to nonsense medical drama too insipid to get into, I'm leaving Korea this winter as part of the midcontract vacation at public schools. Depending on how certain events unfold it may be permanent, which would terminate the contract (which is on its third renewal) six months early. I'm on amicable terms with my school; they're aware of this and are fine with it.   

In an ideal world, I would like to apply for the lump-sum refund prior to leaving to avoid any sort of messy follow-up from my home country. Is this possible to do and, in the event that I do it but end up returning and completing my current contract, will there be any problems with subsequent payments by my school into my pension?

I've heard of several people applying for lump refunds multiple times while on vacation between contracts, but I'm unsure of my situation. On the one hand I'm midcontract, on the other apparently the pension office doesn't actually care about contracts; they just care whether you're leaving the country and what your plans are for afterward.

Danke.

[steveperry]

The problem with your plan is... In order to claim the pension refund you must hand in your ARC and cancel your visa as you leave Korea. So you could apply for the pension refund before you leave, nothing will stop you there. However, if you do turn in your ARC as you leave you won't be able to return to the school if you decide to do so because you have no visa. (at least it would be very difficult... your school would need to be willing to sponsor a new visa, you would have to obtain new documents and submit them to immigration, basically you'll have to do it all over again just like the first time). Generally, the people who are getting pension refunds between contracts are those that are changing jobs and coming back with new visas, not people coming back to the same job, and not people in the middle of a contract with plans to continue it.

However, if you leave Korea and do not come back, you'll still be able to get the pension money back. You can apply for the refund from your home country. All of the forms can be obtained at www.nps.or.kr and the Korean embassy/consulate in your home country can help you with the process. It's not really any more difficult to apply for the refund from abroad than it is in Korea, it just takes a little bit longer.

There's only one other problem that I can think of with your situation. If you leave the country without cancelling your visa (keeping your ARC and leaving your option to return open) and then decide not to return to Korea you may need to wait until the visa is actually cancelled or the ARC expires before you can apply for the refund. Your school should notify immigration that you quit, but there's no guarantee that they will actually do it. As long as the visa remains active you would be considered a resident of Korea and ineligible for the refund. You may need to take steps to cancel the visa yourself (notify immigration, mail in your ARC, etc) or simply wait until after the expiration date on your ARC to apply for the refund.

[modalsaliency]

I was under the impression that you need to show them your ARC at the pension office to claim it, but you don't actually surrender it until you're at the airport and talking to the immigration officer (when they see it's about to expire, as mine isn't). Was I mistaken?

The second problem you mentioned is why I'd rather just get the refund in advance, but if that triggers some sort of forced withdrawal from the system that prevents my employer continuing contributions in the event that I return, it's obviously best not to hazard it.

[steveperry]

I was under the impression that you need to show them your ARC at the pension office to claim it, but you don't actually surrender it until you're at the airport and talking to the immigration officer (when they see it's about to expire, as mine isn't). Was I mistaken?

Yes you need to show your ARC to the office to apply for the refund, but the money will not actually be transferred to your account until after you leave the country and surrender the ARC at the airport. If you apply at the pension office and then do not surrender the ARC when you leave the country they simply won't send you the money.

[modalsaliency]

I was under the impression that you need to show them your ARC at the pension office to claim it, but you don't actually surrender it until you're at the airport and talking to the immigration officer (when they see it's about to expire, as mine isn't). Was I mistaken?

Yes you need to show your ARC to the office to apply for the refund, but the money will not actually be transferred to your account until after you leave the country and surrender the ARC at the airport. If you apply at the pension office and then do not surrender the ARC when you leave the country they simply won't send you the money.

You sure? I've had friends that applied for the refund inbetween jobs while vacationing or doing a Japan Visa run, and they literally got the money wired to their (Korean) bank account the next day after applying, well before their actual departure.

Looks like I may need to drop by the local branch office to see how it goes. Thanks, sir.

[steveperry]

You sure? I've had friends that applied for the refund inbetween jobs while vacationing or doing a Japan Visa run, and they literally got the money wired to their (Korean) bank account the next day after applying, well before their actual departure.

How long ago were those cases? Back 5-10 years ago that kind of thing used to be extremely common. I even knew people who would buy refundable plane tickets to show to the pension office, then later refund the plane ticket and they could basically access the pension money whenever they felt like it without leaving Korea. However it seems that the pension office has really cracked down on that sort of abuse. They now actually check with immigration to see if you have departed or not.