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Parents of foreign students to be granted visas

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The government is considering granting a special visa to the parents of foreign students studying here, allowing them to stay in the country for up to five years and have jobs, officials said on Monday (July 10).

The new visas will be issued only for the parents of students with Korean heritage, including ethnic Koreans living in China at first, although the government could eventually expand the visa status to cover all foreign students studying in Korea, regardless of race and nationality.

The changes will help Korean universities and colleges -- many of them struggling with low admission rates -- to lure more foreign students, said a Ministry of Education and Human Resources Development official.

According to the education and justice ministries' draft proposal, policymakers are considering granting H-2 visas to the parents or spouses of those staying here on D-2 student visas. Currently, H-2 visas enable ethnic Koreans from China and Russia to find employment and freely enter and depart Korea for up to five years.

However, the number of parents or spouses to be permitted extended stay and employment will be limited to one person per student, to reduce the effects on the local labor market.

There were more than 22,000 foreign students studying in Korean colleges and universities as of April last year, according to the justice ministry.

The education ministry is insisting that H-2 visa issuance should be expanded to cover all parents or spouses of foreign students studying here, regardless of whether they come from families of Korean heritage or not.

 

The source of news : Korea.net  July 11, 2006