Foreigners to Gain Access to Essential Public Services via Gov’t Portal

The image captured from the gov.kr website

SEOUL, May 21 (Korea Bizwire) — The Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced Wednesday that it will integrate administrative services for foreigners, previously offered separately, with the gov.kr website.

As of 2018, the number of foreign residents in South Korea, including long-term residents and naturalized citizens, has surpassed 2 million people.

However, foreigners continue to suffer from limited access to public services due to barriers pertaining to language, culture, and the different services offered by each agency.

In response, the government opened a web portal for foreigners on gov.kr on May 14 to offer a one-stop platform through which foreigners can gain easy access to essential public services and benefits helpful for their stay in the country.

The gov.kr offers 100 kinds of public services for foreigners including 47 essential services related to visa and immigration, and 53 others tailored for various needs such as employment, marriage immigration, and study abroad.

Among 47 essential services, 20 can be used at home, where foreigners can easily print out their alien registration certificates, nationality acquisition forms, proof of immigration, and other documents directly from the website.

As for the other 53 tailored services, they include information on the legal permits for employment and part-time job opportunities, as well as support for foreign employees and returning to one’s home country.

For marriage immigrants, the website offers support for family registration, pregnancy, birth, and childcare.

For foreign students, it offers information on applying for study abroad programs as well as opportunities for exchange programs and scholarships.

“We will improve our service delivery platforms and remove all blind spots to help foreign residents gain access to all services they need during their stay in the country,” said Lee Jae-yeong, head of Government Innovation and Organization Management Office at the interior ministry.

M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)