SEOUL: The Ministry of Justice on March 3 announced a set of immigration policy overhauls to be implemented by 2030, including expanded visa quotas for skilled workers and extended visas for “high-performing” seasonal migrant workers.
The ministry said it had formulated the “2030 Immigration Policy Future Strategy” in response to falling birth rates and an ageing population, as well as rapid changes in industrial and technological environments.
“Immigration policy must be repositioned as a mid to long-term national strategy, moving away from the conventional model centred on attracting low-skilled, low-wage foreign labour,” the ministry said in a statement.
New, expanded visa programmes
The plan includes expanding South Korea’s “Top-Tier Visa,” currently issued to professionals working in eight high-tech sectors, including semiconductors, artificial intelligence and robotics.
Eligibility will be broadened to include professors and researchers in science and technology fields.
The ministry also plans to introduce a new visa programme, the K-core Visa (E-7-M), to facilitate long-term stays for international students graduating from South Korean junior colleges.
It also outlined plans to increase the output of foreign caregivers by designating colleges in each region as institutions specialised in training foreign care providers.
The government will design a comprehensive “regional immigration package programme” to encourage foreign nationals to live and work in depopulated regions. It will provide employment and start-up information, social integration education and child care support to help skilled foreign workers and their families settle in local communities.
A new agriculture and fisheries skilled worker visa will also be introduced for seasonal workers who meet certain criteria, such as length of employment and completion of agricultural or fisheries training programmes, allowing them to work in the sector for extended periods.
Regarding hiring, the government will pilot a programme allowing small businesses in South Korea’s provincial regions to hire foreign workers directly.
Similarly, to ease labour shortages during peak farming seasons, the ministry will expand a consignment-based seasonal worker programme, enabling qualified agricultural corporations to hire seasonal workers and dispatch them to farms within the province.
The government will also simplify the current employment visa system. The existing 10 types and 39 subcategories under the E-series visas will be reorganised into three tiers: high, middle and low-skilled visas.
Visa application process overhaul
In addition, the ministry plans to fully transition visa-related public services online and introduce AI-based immigration administration services for prescreening, eligibility reviews and stay permit assessments.
To address mismatches between companies and foreign hires and to expedite recruitment of overseas talent, the government will introduce a registration system for foreign talent recruitment agencies, including headhunting firms.
Meanwhile, the government will also seek to revise related laws to allow certified lawyers to represent applicants in naturalisation procedures.
It added that electronic applications of stay permits and prescreening document preparations will be fast-tracked by delegating its review process to attorneys and organisations registered with the immigration office.
Research and integration
The ministry plans to establish and analyse a database covering foreign residents’ age, education level, geographic background, South Korean language proficiency and integration outcomes to identify target groups with high integration potential.
It will examine expanding inflows under various entry categories, including study abroad, training, family migration, business investment and tourism, while developing a system to assess the social impact of each category and manage visa issuance accordingly.
The policy package includes measures to facilitate social integration, such as mentorship programmes for children from migrant families, support initiatives for ethnic South Koreans from overseas and the creation of a dedicated body to oversee foreign residents’ rights and to promote their welfare.
“Immigration policy under the Lee Jae Myung administration must be designed on the basis of maintaining legal order and securing public consensus,” said Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho.
“We will push forward each task with speed so that immigration policy can contribute to both the national economy and people’s livelihoods, and deliver tangible changes that the public can feel,” he added. - The Korea Herald/ANN
