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By Yeo Hyeon-ho, legal correspondent
The Korean government announced on June 20 that they will submit a revised Nationality Act in a plenary session by the end of this year. According to the revised act, foreign workers, marriage immigrants and Korean residents abroad would have to obtain permanent residency before they can acquire Korean nationality. With enforcement, foreigners staying in Korea would face more difficulty in naturalizing.
The Ministry of Justice’s immigration service announced the draft proposal at an open hearing at Seoul Attorney Education Center on June 20.
Under the current Nationality Act, foreigners who have resided in Korea for over 5 years are eligible to apply for Korean nationality. In the revised Nationality Act, however, expatriates would need to stay as permanent residents for at least 3 years in order to apply for citizenship.
Spouses of Koreans would qualify after 3 years of residence in Korea, including at least a year as a permanent resident. The current standard for them is over 2 years of residing in Korea.
As an exception, foreigners who prove meritorious achievement for Korea can directly apply for citizenship without time as permanent residents.
“Foreign workers who enter the country under Employment Permit System, can revisit Korea 4 years and 10 months after the working period has expired,” said Kim Jong-min, deputy of Immigration Policy Division of Ministry of Justice. “As more foreigners acquire Korean citizenship, it might cause new problems in society.”
He explained the background of the revision, “Some of them are underprepared, lack the ability to adjust to Korea culturally and economically. We need some prevention before they cause problems.”
By the end of this year, 53,000 foreign workers’ working permits will expire. After next year, more than 180,000 of them are expected to have invalid permits.
Some experts criticized that the revised Act on the grounds that it complicates foreign workers’ naturalization.
“If the government makes a period of permanent residency a prerequisite for acquiring citizenship, that in effect will prevent foreign workers for acquiring Korean nationality. It also makes it more intricate for marriage immigrants and Korean residents abroad to obtain it,” said attorney Yoon Ji-young, on the open hearing.
Lee Chul-wu, professor of Yonsei University pointed out, “I wonder if that kind of change in the system can help social integration.”
　
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