Four government English-teaching programs publish what they pay. Japan's JET pays ¥4.02 million in year one (about $2,120 a month) and ¥4.14 million in year two. South Korea's EPIK pays 2.2 to 2.8 million won a month on its main scale (about $1,650 to $2,100) plus a furnished apartment, severance and airfare. France's TAPIF pays €1,010.67 a month gross (about $1,137, roughly €810 net) for up to 12 hours a week. Spain's NALCAP pays €800 to €1,000 a month (about $900 to $1,125) for 14 to 16 hours a week. No other route on The Departure Board has an official scale; everything else is a market estimate.
Official scales verified at source 17 October 2026 (The Departure Board, Issue 006). USD at European Central Bank reference rates of 16 October 2026. This page is updated in place each edition; market estimates for the other countries are kept separately in The TEFL Salary Report.
Which TEFL programs publish an official pay scale?
| Program | Official pay, local | About, USD | Hours and term | What is included | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan · JET Program | ¥4.02 million a year in year one; ¥4.14 million in year two | $2,120 a month, year one | One-year contracts | Pay set by CLAIR. Accommodation is your own cost. | JET Program USA |
| South Korea · EPIK | 2.2 to 2.8 million won a month on the main scale at the levels currently hiring. Chungbuk pays 2.9 and 3.0 million won at two higher levels. Level 3 (2.1 million) is not currently being hired. | $1,650 to $2,100 a month | One-year contracts | Furnished single apartment, severance pay and airfare on the public program. | EPIK salary and benefits, updated 4 May 2026 |
| France · TAPIF | €1,010.67 a month gross; about €810 net | $1,137 a month gross | Up to 12 hours a week, October to April | Assistant placement in a French public school. $149 application fee. Ages 20 to 35, three years of higher education, B1 French. | Villa Albertine, TAPIF |
| Spain · NALCAP | €800 to €1,000 a month, by region | $900 to $1,125 a month | 14 to 16 hours a week, 1 November to 31 May | Medical insurance. The most recent call ran 2 to 30 June 2026; no next window published. | Spanish Ministry of Education; the program's own call page when a window is open |
| Colombia · legal floor | Minimum wage 1,750,905 pesos a month in 2026 | $552 a month | Statutory minimum, not a teaching scale | No government in Latin America publishes academy pay; the minimum wage is the floor to check an offer against. | Government of Colombia, 2026 minimum wage decree |
Which program pays the most?
JET, in cash: ¥4.02 million a year is about $2,120 a month in year one, and it rises in year two. EPIK's cash pay is lower, $1,650 to $2,100 a month, but it includes a furnished apartment, so a teacher who would otherwise pay Seoul or Busan rent often keeps more of an EPIK salary than a JET one. TAPIF and NALCAP are part-time assistant stipends, 12 and 14 to 16 hours a week, and are best read as a funded year in France or Spain rather than a salary.
Why does the rest of the market have no official figure?
Because nobody publishes one. China, Vietnam, Thailand, Taiwan, the UAE and most of Latin America hire through individual schools, language centers and recruiters, and no government sets or reports teacher pay for them. Any range for those countries, including ours, is a market estimate built from job listings, and it should be labeled as one. Our estimates, with the date they were last reviewed, are in The TEFL Salary Report and on The Pay Desk. Where a government publishes a minimum wage, as Colombia does, we print it as the legal floor.
What should you check before comparing two offers?
Three things change the real value of a salary more than the headline number. Housing: EPIK provides it, JET does not, and in the Gulf it is usually an allowance. Tax: UAE salaries are paid tax-free; Japanese, Korean and European pay is taxed at source, and TAPIF's €1,010.67 gross becomes roughly €810 net. Hours: a 12-hour TAPIF week and a full-time JET week are not the same job. Compare the whole package, and check the program page on the day you apply, because scales change; EPIK's current page is dated 4 May 2026 and JET's year-one figure is CLAIR's for the 2027 intake.
How is this page kept current?
Each official scale is re-read on the program's own site before every issue of The Departure Board, published on the 4th and the 18th. When a figure changes, this page is corrected in place and the change is noted in the next issue. The most recent correction, in Issue 006, moved EPIK's lower figure from 2.1 to 2.2 million won, because the 2.1 million rate belongs to a level EPIK is not currently hiring at. Open application windows for each program are on the Now Boarding list.
How to cite this. Premier TEFL, "Official TEFL program pay scales: what JET, EPIK, TAPIF and NALCAP pay", verified 17 October 2026, https://premiertefl.com/blogs/posts/official-tefl-program-pay-scales. Figures are the programs' own published scales on that date; USD conversions use European Central Bank reference rates of 16 October 2026. Read our Editorial Charter.
Part of The Departure Board, Premier TEFL's TEFL jobs report. Back issues are in the archive.
