The electronic visa program enables foreigners to complete all procedures needed to apply, review, and issue a visa online, without having to visit a local embassy. (Image: Kobiz Media)
SEOUL, Nov. 19 (Korea Bizwire) — Recruiting foreign specialists and academics in the materials, parts, and equipment sectors will become easier.
The Ministry of Justice announced on Monday that it will introduce a new electronic visa program for foreign specialists, following concerns that previous visa and administrative procedures related to recruiting foreign specialists in the industrial and educational sectors have been excessively complex.
The electronic visa program enables foreigners to complete all procedures needed to apply, review, and issue a visa online, without having to visit a local embassy.
The duration required for processing a visa will also be shortened from 30 days to less than one week.
Foreign academics being recruited as assistant professors or higher will only need to submit an appointment certificate for visa review.
Previously, both full-time and part-time lecturers were required to submit an appointment certificate, career certificate, degree certificate, and other documents for review.
The government also plans to set wage requirements when recruiting foreign lecturers by allowing recruitment only when the wage per hour exceeds minimum pay as notified by the Ministry of Justice each year.
Previously, the wage standard was set to exceed 80 percent of Gross National Income per capita in the previous year, failing to accommodate the realities faced by many universities paying lecturers by the hour.
H. M. Kang (hmkang@koreabizwire.com)
