South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Wednesday that the US had agreed to allow South Koreans to operate equipment at US investment sites on temporary visas, opening up new opportunities for the ally to send workers there for business.
Meanwhile, according to Reuters, US officials at a working group meeting did not provide any new responses to arguments in favor of expanding access to US visas for South Korean specialists, although they reaffirmed their commitment to developing a trade and investment partnership, the ministry said in a statement.
The working group was formed in September following a large-scale immigration raid at a Hyundai Motor battery plant under construction in the US state of Georgia, where hundreds of South Korean workers were arrested.
The arrests, which stunned the South Korean government and public, highlighted the lack of access to US visas for South Korean skilled workers needed to work at investment sites. The State Department reported that a team of representatives from the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Commerce clarified that South Korean workers can install, maintain, and repair equipment needed by South Korean companies investing in the United States using the ESTA visa waiver program and temporary B-1 visas in South Korea. “The clarification on B-1 visas essentially confirms the same route we already used for short-term visits of up to six months, such as equipment installation,” Mira Park, head of the Immigration Division of the U.S. Visa Service, told Reuters. “However, in practice, even with visas properly issued by the U.S. consulate and supported by the necessary documentation, we continue to see workers denied entry at border crossings… However, this measure does not address the underlying problem.”
The US Embassy in Seoul will open a new office specializing in visas for South Korean companies, and US immigration authorities will establish a new line of communication with South Korean missions to more effectively coordinate visa issues, the State Department announced.
This move may provide a short-term solution to the visa problem, but the United States needs to introduce a new visa type or increase visa quotas for skilled workers in Korea, said Park Tae-sung, vice president of the Korea Battery Manufacturers Association, of which LG Energy Solutions is a member.
“This will help reduce uncertainty regarding workers’ entry into the United States and their fear of being denied entry at US airports,” Park told Reuters.
LG Energy Solutions, which suspended operations at its joint venture with Hyundai in Georgia following the September raid, said: “We are grateful for the government’s prompt support and will carefully prepare and work diligently to regulate the construction and operation of our factories in the United States.”
South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Wednesday that the US had agreed to allow South Koreans to operate equipment at US investment sites on temporary visas, opening up new opportunities for the ally to send workers there for business.
Meanwhile, according to Reuters, US officials at a working group meeting did not provide any new responses to arguments in favor of expanding access to US visas for South Korean specialists, although they reaffirmed their commitment to developing a trade and investment partnership, the ministry said in a statement.
The working group was formed in September following a large-scale immigration raid at a Hyundai Motor battery plant under construction in the US state of Georgia, where hundreds of South Korean workers were arrested.
The arrests, which stunned the South Korean government and public, highlighted the lack of access to US visas for South Korean skilled workers needed to work at investment sites. The State Department reported that a team of representatives from the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Commerce clarified that South Korean workers can install, maintain, and repair equipment needed by South Korean companies investing in the United States using the ESTA visa waiver program and temporary B-1 visas in South Korea. “The clarification on B-1 visas essentially confirms the same route we already used for short-term visits of up to six months, such as equipment installation,” Mira Park, head of the Immigration Division of the U.S. Visa Service, told Reuters. “However, in practice, even with visas properly issued by the U.S. consulate and supported by the necessary documentation, we continue to see workers denied entry at border crossings… However, this measure does not address the underlying problem.”
The US Embassy in Seoul will open a new office specializing in visas for South Korean companies, and US immigration authorities will establish a new line of communication with South Korean missions to more effectively coordinate visa issues, the State Department announced.
This move may provide a short-term solution to the visa problem, but the United States needs to introduce a new visa type or increase visa quotas for skilled workers in Korea, said Park Tae-sung, vice president of the Korea Battery Manufacturers Association, of which LG Energy Solutions is a member.
“This will help reduce uncertainty regarding workers’ entry into the United States and their fear of being denied entry at US airports,” Park told Reuters.
LG Energy Solutions, which suspended operations at its joint venture with Hyundai in Georgia following the September raid, said: “We are grateful for the government’s prompt support and will carefully prepare and work diligently to regulate the construction and operation of our factories in the United States.”