17, 2019 december

The Korean National Assembly is debating tougher penalties when it comes to companies of unlawful residents. For people voluntarily reporting unlawful residence by 28 February 2020, charges will soon be paid off or exempted.

Penalty Increases

Unlawful residents are susceptible to fines which range from KRW 1,000,000 for unlawful stays of significantly less than one thirty days to KRW 20,000,000 for illegal stays of 3 years or even more.

The most penalty for companies of illegal residents is KRW 20,000,000 OR 36 months’ imprisonment. The proposed amendment presently under discussion would increase this to KRW 50,000,000 AND 5 years of imprisonment.

Voluntary Reporting for Prohibited Residents

For unlawful residents who voluntarily report their domestic status by 28 February 2020 and therefore are planned to go out of the united states by 30 June 2020:

• The penalty charge will be exempted .
• A “Certificate of Voluntary Departure” is supposed to be given, letting them reapply for the visa that is korean the long term. On reapplying, they’ll certainly be granted a single-entry C3 visa allowing a maximum stay of 3 months. When they then leave the nation within ninety days, and without committing any unlawful tasks, they could be eligible for numerous entries and an extended duration of stay the very next time they make an application for a visa.
• They will be permitted to submit an application for TOPIK (Test of Proficiency in Korean). When they obtain level 2 or above, they’ll be permitted to submit an application for an E9 visa (for employees from particular nations only).

For unlawful residents who voluntarily report their residential status by 28 February 2020 but they are scheduled to go out of the united states after 30 June 2020; OR

For unlawful residents that do maybe not voluntarily report their unlawful status that is residential 28 February 2020 and they are caught by federal government research after 2 March 2020:

• The penalty fee shall be imposed as well as the violation duration would be determined from 1 March 2020.
• Any foreign national who paid a penalty fee for illegal residence will be banned from re-entry to South Korea for between six months and one year whether or not they voluntarily reported their residential status.
• Those that don’t pay the penalty cost in full should be completely forbidden from entering South Korea.

Voluntary Reporting for Companies

Production industry

• The reporting that is voluntary will run between 11 December 2019 and 31 March 2020.
• The penalty fee will be exempted and their illegally-resident employees will be allowed to stay for three more months from the reporting date for employers who report during this period.

Agriculture and fishing industry

• The reporting that is voluntary will run between 11 December 2019 and 15 January 2020.
• The penalty fee will be exempted and their illegally-resident employees will have legal opportunities for seasonal work for employers who report within this period. a visa that is new for regular employees (E8) is under conversation during the Ministry of Justice.

Small and medium-sized organizations under the Employment allow System (EPS)

• The reporting that is voluntary will run between 11 December 2019 and 31 March 2020.
• For employers whom report in this period, 30% associated with penalty fee will be imposed. Nevertheless, they will be banned from hiring foreign nationals for at least three years if they are caught by government investigation without having reported, 100% of the fee will be imposed and. The penalty charge shall be determined by immigration officers in line with the amount of the time scale of breach.
• For unlawful residents reported by their companies in this particular duration, 30% of this penalty charge may be imposed, and they’re going to be permitted to just work at the sponsoring business until their E9 visa expires. When they choose to work elsewhere, the Ministry of Employment and Labor can help them to locate another work. Nonetheless, if they are caught by federal government research with no reported, 100% for the penalty cost would be imposed and also a forced departure order.

Case Studies

Case 1

A D8 visa owner sponsored by company A, unintentionally missed the extension due date due to their Alien Registration Card (ARC).

• A penalty charge shall be imposed. The time of violation are going to be determined through the after the ARC expiry date day.
• In the event that immigration officer finds that the program due date had been missed in error, then your ARC owner will undoubtedly be exempted from the ban on re-entry.
• All of the needed documents must certanly be ready and, moreover, both ARC owner and company must not have appropriate violations and unpaid fees.
• There’s no big change set alongside the policy that is current.

Instance 2

An D8 visa owner sponsored by business a has additionally been working at business B, that will be into the same team as business A.

The visa owner was compensated from both entities but his D8 visa was sponsored by business A only, therefore the work on company B had not been reported towards the immigration office.

• A penalty charge may be imposed for the ARC owner and company B.
• The time scale of breach will be calculated through the date the visa owner received payments from company B, that you can get via their withholding tax certificates.
• The re-entry ban (for 6 months to 1 12 months) will change from situation to situation, during the discernment of immigration officers, however it is most likely that to be reproduced generally in most cases. The likelihood of the re-entry ban in such cases is just a policy that is new.
• The D8 visa holder and their second workplace have to show it was a easy blunder rather than tax avoidance that is deliberate.

Instance 3

An E9 visa holder has completed just work at the visa sponsor business (company A). The E9 visa has staying legitimacy, plus the owner has obtained a fresh task at a unique business (company B) to exert effort through to the E9 expiration date.

• Aside from visa type, working at a non-sponsoring company is illegal plus the Korean federal federal government will impose the stiffest laws in these cases.
• A penalty cost both for employee and employer should be determined from the date the visa holder began just work at business B.
• Year the visa holder will also receive a departure order and will be banned from re-entry to South Korea for between six months and one. In the event that penalty is certainly not paid, the ban shall be permanent.

Companies who might be impacted are encouraged to contact a Newland Chase immigration consultant for case-specific advice.

For basic advice and information on immigration and company happen to be Southern Korea, please contact us.