Quota Remains Unchanged for 4 Consecutive Years
The South Korean government is planning to give the E-9 visa for general employment permission to 56,000 foreigners next year. For reference, the number was 58,000 in 2016 and 56,000 in 2017, 2018 and this year.
The number in the manufacturing sector is going to be maintained at this year’s level in view of the additional demand related to 52-hour workweek implementation. The number in the fishing industry has been increased by 500 with the number of applications on the increase.
The government is going to increase the total foreign worker employment limit by place of business by 20 percent and increase the annual new employment limit by the number of newly hired locals within the total employment limit when a small or medium-sized manufacturer with five to 299 employees needs to hire more people for 52-hour workweek implementation, has a hard time hiring locals, and submits a work hour reduction plan.
In addition, the government is planning to crack down on illegal immigrants on an inter-ministerial level and strengthen the prevention of illegal immigration. In this regard, it is going to inspect large-scale public construction sites in the first half of next year.