Chinese Koreans (Chosunjok) refer to Koreans of Chinese nationality who live scattered in the three northeastern provinces of China and other Chinese lands. According to the statistics of the Ministry of Justice, as of the end of April 2023, there were 700,000 Chinese Koreans who had entered and stayed in Korea with a work visit (H-2) visa, marriage immigration (F-6) visa, or overseas Korean (F-4) visa. This number accounts for about one-third of all foreigners residing in Korea (2.36 million). In addition, it can be seen that about 1 out of 3 Chinese Koreans (approximately 2 million people) residing in the 3 northeastern provinces of China are living in Korea.
In order to prevent confusion in the domestic labor market due to oversupply, Chinese Koreans were discriminated against by excluding overseas Koreans who migrated to China or Russia during the late Chosun Dynasty or the Japanese colonial period from being subject to the Overseas Koreans Act. However, in 2007, the government introduced the ‘visiting employment system’ with the intention of expanding the entry door and job opportunities as part of the policy to eliminate discrimination and embrace overseas Koreans residing in China and the former Soviet Union.
■ Korean Chinese Homeland Visit
The visit to the homeland of Chinese Koreans, which was promoted for the humanitarian purpose of reuniting separated families, began in 1976. At the time, the Korean people warmly welcomed their Chinese compatriots and felt a warm sense of compatriotism in the sense that their visit to their homeland was a reunion of separated families and a reconciliation of the Korean people. In addition, the South Korean government issued travel documents at diplomatic missions abroad, such as Hong Kong, in lieu of difficult entry visas for humanitarian reasons, even though they are Chinese nationals, for descendants of independence activists or Chinese Koreans whose life or death has been confirmed through the KBS Search for Separated Families campaign, and allowed them to enter the country. In addition, convenience was provided, such as customs clearance, even if the herbal medicines that Chinese Koreans were carrying when entering Korea exceeded customs clearance standards.
However, as the number of Korean-Chinese immigrants increased rapidly, rumors spread that they made a lot of money by selling herbal medicines they brought to Korea to relatives, etc., igniting the fire of the 'Korean Dream'. As a result, the visit to Korea, which started with the pure purpose of visiting relatives, such as at reunions of separated families, turned into a social problem by bringing in too many herbal medicines for travel expenses and selling them at stalls around Deoksu Palace. Accordingly, the government required Korean Chinese to obtain an entry visa instead of a travel document when entering Korea, and also strengthened customs clearance standards for herbal medicines brought into Korea.
Meanwhile, after the historic diplomatic ties between Korea and China in August 1992, the government began issuing visas to visit relatives in China to Koreans who were invited by their Korean relatives. In addition, the entry door for Chinese Koreans was gradually expanded by lowering the range of invited relatives and their ages. At that time, Koreans' avoidance of 3D businesses, the lack of manpower due to the large-scale apartment construction boom, and the large-scale rush of Chinese Koreans to enter the country coincided. As a result, the illegal stay of Koreans in China, fake marriages, smuggling, and visa brokers have become social problems. At the time, some civic groups and the media raised the issue that, although there was a high demand for Korean-Chinese workers who spoke Korean and had similar sentiments to us, the South Korean government did not view Korean-Chinese as Koreans but as objects of management and control just like foreign workers. Park Kil-nam, The Book, pp. 120-122.
■ Enactment of Overseas Koreans Act
In August 1999, the government established legal and institutional mechanisms to enable overseas Koreans to freely enter and exit Korea, their home country, engage in economic activities, and expand investment opportunities for overseas Koreans in the inflow of foreign capital into Korea. The “Act on the Immigration and Legal Status of Overseas Koreans” (hereinafter ‘Overseas Koreans Act’) was enacted.
At the time of the enactment of the Overseas Koreans Act, the South Korean government, in order to avoid diplomatic friction with China and Russia and to prevent chaos in the domestic labor market due to an oversupply of cheap overseas Korean labor, excluded from the application of the ‘Overseas Koreans Act’ those who emigrated to China or Russia or were taken to Japan during the late Chosun Dynasty or Japanese colonial period. Then, some civic groups filed a constitutional complaint with the Constitutional Court for the violation of the right to equality.
The Constitutional Court rendered a decision on the unconstitutionality of the exclusion of overseas Chinese-Koreans (Chosunjok) and former Soviet Union Koreans (Koryo-in) who emigrated before the establishment of the government as subjects of the Overseas Korean Act, stating that it was an arbitrary legislative act that discriminates against overseas Koreans before the establishment of the government without rational reason, violating the principle of equality under Article 11 of the Constitution. The Court ordered the revision of the Overseas Korean Act by December 31, 2003. 99 Heonma 494, 2001. 11. 29.
Accordingly, the Ministry of Justice amended the 'Overseas Koreans Act' to include 'those who immigrated abroad before the establishment of the Korean government and acquired foreign nationality' in the scope of application of 'foreign nationality Koreans'. Discrimination provisions were repealed.
However, the Ministry of Justice was concerned that if more than 2 million Chinese Koreans enter the country in mass and engage in simple labor, there will be chaos in the domestic labor market and the order of stay. In the end, in order to prevent Koreans residing in China and the former Soviet Union from being employed in simple labor jobs, the ‘Enforcement Decree of the Immigration Control Act’ was amended to exclude simple labor activities from the scope of activities for overseas Koreans (F-4) Residence Status.
Meanwhile, in order to resolve the manpower shortage in the service and construction industries, the government introduced an employment management system in 2002 that allowed foreign nationals living in China and the former Soviet Union with ties to Korea to work in eight industries, including restaurants and construction, for two years. This system issued a visit and cohabitation (F-1-4) visa to Chinese Koreans with connections in Korea but allowed them to work in the form of an activity permit other than the status of sojourn once they entered Korea. With the implementation of the employment permit system in 2004, the employment management system was operated in the form of a special employment permit system.
Until the introduction of the Special Employment Permit System in 2004 and the Working Holiday Program in 2007, Chinese nationals of Korean descent faced limited job opportunities in low-skilled industries and were unable to obtain work visas, which led some to attempt illegal entry or become undocumented workers and face forced deportation. For Chinese Koreans, South Korea was a land of promises and opportunities, but at the same time a land of betrayal, tears, and risks such as illegal employment, workplace accidents, illegal entry, and fraud. Park Kil-nam, The Book, p. 125
■ Introduction of Visiting Employment System
In March 2007, the Ministry of Justice introduced the ‘Working Visiting System’ with the intention of expanding the entry door and job opportunities as part of a policy to resolve discrimination and embrace overseas Koreans residing in China and the former Soviet Union. The main contents of the visiting employment system are as follows:
First, Koreans aged 25 or older residing in China or the former Soviet Union were issued multiple-entry (H-2) visas valid for 5 years. In this case, to prevent permanent residence, an extension of the period of sojourn within 3 years from the date of first entry was required, and after the 3-year period of sojourn was over, they were allowed to leave and re-enter the country and stay in Korea only until the visiting work visa expired. However, in the case of receiving a ‘confirmation of employment period extension’ from the employment center of the Ministry of Employment and Labor, a maximum stay of 4 years and 10 months was permitted.
Second, the entry door was expanded even for the “Koreans without relatives,” who do not have a family register or relatives in Korea. After passing the Korean language test announced by the Minister of Justice and selected through a computerized lottery, a working visit (H-2) visa was issued.
Third, a visiting work (H-2) visa was issued to the parents or spouses of a student (D-2) visa holder who has been attending a domestic university for more than one semester when they submit documents proving that they are Koreans.
Fourth, if Koreans who entered the country with a visiting employment (H-2) visa want to work in workplaces that are allowed to work, such as service, they can get a job at a business that has been issued a "special employment confirmation" from the Employment Center of the Ministry of Employment Center.
The visiting employment system has a kind of work permit in that it allows foreign workers who entered Korea under the general employment permit system to get a job in some service industries that are not allowed and allows them to freely search for jobs and change workplaces.
Current visiting employment (H-2) visa holders can work in 38 simple labor industries, such as manufacturing, construction, livestock, wholesale and retail, lodging, restaurants, childcare, housekeepers, and caregivers, as defined in the 'Korean Standard Industry Classification'. do. In addition, you can get a job at a business that has been issued a ‘Special Employability Confirmation’ from the Employment Center of the Ministry of Employment and Labor. For reference, if Koreans who entered Korea on a working visit (H-2) visa want to work at a workplace that falls under the service industry or other permitted industries, they must complete employment training at a job training center operated by the Human Resources Development Service of Korea (HRD Korea) before applying for a job. (3 days, 1 day for re-entrants). In particular, if you want to get a job in the construction industry, you must complete employment training as well as construction industry employment training (one day) before issuing a construction industry employment certificate.
Since the implementation of the visiting employment system in 2007, the number of Korean-Chinese illegally residing in Korea has decreased significantly, and the Korean-Chinese community has strengthened their motherland identity toward Korea. With the implementation of the Korean language proficiency test related to the visiting employment system, the atmosphere of recognizing Korean as a mother tongue has spread in the Chinese community, and in the case of some universities in China, the name of the department has been changed from 'Chosun Language Department' to 'Korean Language Department,' a sign of practical change in the Korean community. These changes show that the development of the nation through the construction of a Korean community is not a false vision but is possible with the government's active policy of embracing Koreans. Kwak Jae-seok, “Evaluation and Policy Tasks for Visiting Employment System,” Immigration Administration Research Society, The 6th M․paz Regular Forum, 2010, p. 27.
■ Supplement the Visiting Employment System
The Ministry of Justice has introduced a total quota system for issuing work visas since 2010, limiting the total number of H-2 visa holders for employment to 303,000. In addition, foreigners entering the country on a short-term C-3-8 visa are allowed to change their status to that of an H-2 visa holder if they complete a six-week technical education program. However, considering the changing environment of the policy towards overseas Koreans, such as the continuous decrease in applicants for technical education and demands for improvement in the education system, Chinese Koreans have been required to obtain an H-2 work visa directly from an overseas embassy without completing technical education since March 2019. The Ministry of Justice requires the submission of a health examination report (including tuberculosis, mental illness, and drug testing conducted within the past three months from the application date) when applying for an H-2 visa. In addition, to support the adjustment of overseas Koreans to life in Korea, they are required to submit a certificate of completion of a three-hour early adjustment program when applying for foreigner registration.
For reference, Korean Chinese with a working visit (H-2) visa can work in the 38 simple labor industries as a foreigner registration subject, but after staying in Korea for 3 years (after receiving a certificate of extension of employment activity from the employment center of the Ministry of Employment and Labor, Korean Chinese are allowed to stay in Korea for a maximum of 4 years and 10 months), there is the hassle of leaving for China and then re-entering the country with a visiting work visa. However, overseas Korean (F-4) visa holders are subject to a report of domestic residence and are not restricted from employment activities, except for simple labor and speculative acts that go against good morals or other social order, and are allowed to stay once every three years. If you receive permission to extend the period, you can continue to stay in Korea.
Lastly, Korean-Chinese in the early days came as industrial trainees after the establishment of diplomatic ties between Korea and China in 1992 and worked mainly in the 3D industry and farming and fishing villages. Since the 2000s, Chinese Koreans who have completed university education in China and Korea have started to enter mainstream Korean society, engaging in personal business or professional work. In particular, since the implementation of the visit employment system in 2007, the status of Korean-Chinese in Korea has changed significantly. As their status changed, they organized many self-help groups and social organizations for the purpose of protecting their rights and nurturing the younger generation. Among the highly educated third-generation Chinese Koreans who studied at domestic universities and have international competitiveness, an increasing number of elite intellectuals are working in professional positions such as university professors, large corporations, research institutes, and the financial industry. Considering the potential of Korean-Chinese, who play a large role in Korea's trade with China, it is thought that policy support is needed so that our society can actively embrace them and settle down in Korea.
< Applicants for Chinese Koreans Overseas Korean(F4) Visa >
√ Culture and Arts (D-1), Journalism (D-5), Religion (D-6), Presidency (D-7), Investment (D-8), Trade (D-9) Status of Residence and Professor (E- A person who has stayed in Korea for more than 6 months with a Residence Status from 1) to Special Activities (E-7)
√ Holders of a professional bachelor’s degree (two-year or higher graduate) or higher
· Limited to those with TOPIC level 3 or higher and those who have completed level 4 or higher of the Social Immigration Program
√ Representatives of corporations, registered executives and management staff
Limited to companies that have been established for at least 1 year at the time of application, executives excluding the representative must have served for at least 6 months, and employees in managerial positions for at least 1 year
√ Sole proprietorship with sales of USD 100,000 or more as of the previous year
√ A person who wants to run a private business by investing more than 300 million won in Korea
√ Executives and employees of multinational corporations, university professors and middle and high school and elementary school teachers;
√ A visiting employment (H-2) qualification holder of childcare If a visit employment (H-2) visa holder completes a 40-hour (5-week course) nanny training program for the elderly and disabled, which is conducted by the Korea Immigration Foundation designated by the Ministry of Justice, and has worked as a nanny in the same household for two or more years, then they are eligible for a change of status.
, agriculture and livestock, fishing, root industries, and local material manufacturing industries.
√ A person who has obtained a "national technical qualification certificate" in cooking, pastry making, baking, beauty, laundry services, etc.
√ Holders of permanent residency in OECD countries
√ Overseas Koreans aged 60 or older
√ Those who have completed level 4 or higher of the Social Integration Program
