S. Korea to introduce high-tech sector foreign talent visa

The South Korean government will introduce an E-7-S visa for high-tech industry employees and high-income earners that will take effect in January.

Easing visa requirements in the high-tech sector is part of governmental efforts to address a labor shortage.

The Ministry of Justice also plans to expand the scope of visa issuances, excluding the areas of simple labor and general office jobs.

Visas for foreign professionals have currently been issued for only 93 job types.

The government launched a drive to overhaul the visa system to better cope with newly-established industries and jobs.

The ministry increased the minimum wage requirements for issuance of the new high-tech visa to over the per-capita gross national income (GNI) of the previous year to avoid abuse by low-wage foreigners.

The government would also increase the number of annual skilled worker visas (E-7-4) to be issued from 2,000 this year to 5,000 next year.