Developers abroad chapter
35 developers living outside Korea answered this chapter about the move they're considering.
Starts with 2 cross-tabs, or jump to the 5 individual answers ↓
Cross-tab
The keenest are stopped by visas, the hesitant by pay
Barriers by how strongly they want to come
Among developers abroad who rate their interest in working in Korea at the top of the scale, 85% name visa or sponsorship as a barrier and only 4% name the salary level. Among the less certain it reverses: 25% and 38%. The people who most want to come have already made their peace with Korean pay and run into immigration instead.
Name visa or sponsorship
Interested
Very interested
Name the salary level
Interested
Very interested
The less-certain group is eight people, so its figures carry margins above ±30. This also runs both ways: looking into a move is what teaches you the visa rules, so naming the visa is partly a sign of having looked.
Groups differ in more than the split shown, so read these as descriptions, not causes.
Cross-tab
The closer the move, the more it is about the visa
Barriers by how soon people plan to move
Among developers abroad who plan to move within a year, 81% name visa or sponsorship as a barrier and 50% say they don't know where to look. Among those moving later or still undecided, it is 63% and 32%.
Name visa or sponsorship
Moving within a year
Later or undecided
Don't know where to look
Moving within a year
Later or undecided
16 and 19 people, with margins near ±20 points, so the ordering carries more than the size of the gaps.
Groups differ in more than the split shown, so read these as descriptions, not causes.
Every question in this chapter
Interest in working in Korea
35 answered
1 — Not interested
2
3 — Neutral
4
5 — Very interested
When they might move
35 answered
Within a year
1–3 years
Someday, no timeline
Just curious
What attracts them to Korea
35 answered · multiple answers allowed
Career
Infrastructure
Language
Culture & history
Safety
Food
Adventure
Nature
Pop culture (K-pop/K-drama)
Friendship/romance
Family
Other
Biggest barriers to making the move
35 answered · multiple answers allowed
Visa / sponsorship
Unsure companies will hire me
Korean language
Don't know where to look
Salary level
Cost / quality of life unknowns
What would most help them move
35 answered
Visa support
A clear job pipeline
Community / network
Relocation support
Korean-language help
Higher salary