TEFL Scams and Red Flags: How to Choose a Safe Course and Employer

Most TEFL providers and schools are legitimate, but the sector attracts a few bad actors. The main warning signs are asking you to pay before you have a written contract, promises of guaranteed jobs or visas, and certificates that cannot be verified on an official register. Verify first and pay second.

Red flags in courses

• Claims of being the accredited course without naming the accrediting body or showing a register entry.
• Prices that change sharply with a countdown timer, with no clear explanation of what is included.
• A promise that the certificate is accepted everywhere. No qualification is.
• No tutor contact details, no assessment and no way to talk to a person before paying.
• A certificate issued by the provider itself and presented as if awarded by a recognised body.

Check the awarding body and the course by name on its own site, not through the provider's link. Regulation and accreditation are different things, so ask what each term means for this course. How to choose a provider has a checklist.

Red flags in jobs and recruiters

• A fee for a placement, a visa guarantee or a job-matching service paid to an individual.
• A contract that is vague on hours, pay, housing or who pays for flights.
• A request to enter on a tourist visa and start work before the permit is issued.
• Pressure to decide in hours, or to move the conversation to a private messaging app.
• A school with no verifiable address, registration or current teachers you can contact.

In legitimate sponsored arrangements, the employer typically files the main applications. South Korea's E-2 requires a contract with a lawfully operating institution, which usually applies for the visa issuance paperwork. Vietnam's work permit is submitted by the sponsoring entity, and Thailand's teaching permit is requested by the school. A person who offers to arrange all this for a fee, without a named school, deserves suspicion.

How to check before you commit

1. Ask for the contract in writing and read it. Note hours, pay, housing, tax and termination.
2. Contact two current or former teachers and ask them about pay timing and conditions.
3. Search the school's name with words such as complaints, unpaid or visa.
4. Confirm the school's legal registration where it can be checked.
5. Ask the embassy which visa applies. Do not rely only on the school's description.

Read the visa and paperwork checklist so you know what a normal process looks like.

If you have already paid

What a fair contract contains

A contract should name the legal employer, the school address, your start and end dates, weekly teaching hours, pay and pay date, and any deductions. It should say who provides or pays for housing, flights and health insurance, how the visa or permit is handled, and how either side can end the contract and with what notice. It should not include clauses that withhold your passport or require you to repay large sums if the school ends the contract.

Be careful with contracts that pay a large part of your salary at the end, or that make you responsible for the school's costs. If something is in a language you cannot read, ask for a certified translation or independent advice before signing. Keep a signed copy.

Your passport is yours. A school may ask to hold a copy or to process documents for you, but it should not keep the original passport indefinitely. If anyone insists, contact the Embassy of Ireland in that country.

The CCPC says you can cancel an online service contract within 14 days of agreeing it, without giving a reason, by telling the business in writing. The refund is due within 14 days of your notice. If you were not told about the right to cancel, the period extends to 12 months. Keep screenshots and payment records. The CCPC consumer helpline is +353 1 402 5555. If you suspect fraud, report it to your local Garda station. An Garda Síochána's general advice on advance fee fraud applies here: be wary of any demand for payment before a service is delivered, and of offers that sound too good to be true.