🇰🇷 Work & skilled workers

Foreign nationals who are victims of domestic violence, sexual violence, child abuse or human trafficking can submit applications for residence permission at either the immigration office responsible for their registered residence or the immigration office responsible for the shelter or protection facility where they are staying. The change covers residence-related procedures such as applications to extend the period of stay. This gives eligible victims an alternative location for handling their immigration matters and means they do not necessarily have to return to the jurisdiction connected to their former residence. The Ministry of Justice announced the procedural improvement on 4 September 2026.

South Korea has published a new 31 August 2026 version of the Ministry of Justice-designated medical institution list for health examinations. The updated list identifies the medical institutions that are designated by the Ministry of Justice for the relevant examinations. The official notice also establishes two important practical instructions: Medical institutions do not necessarily offer the same examination items, so applicants should contact the institution in advance to confirm that it can issue the documents they require. Documents issued by the medical institution must be submitted to the immigration office in sealed condition. The update therefore changes the current reference list of designated providers, rather than establishing a new immigration health requirement.

The Ministry of Justice has now completely reorganised the Regional Specialized Visa system around regional industries and regional settlement. The revised system introduces several major changes. 1. Regional visa quotas will be recalibrated The Ministry says quotas will be adjusted to appropriate levels, rather than simply maintaining previous allocations. 2. Foreign-talent selection and verification will be strengthened The Ministry will strengthen the process for selecting and verifying foreign talent participating in regional visa programmes. 3. Local-government responsibility will increase Participating local governments will have greater responsibility for managing the foreign nationals brought into their regions. This makes local governments a more important part of the immigration-management process. 4. Regional industry becomes central to immigration selection The programme is being redesigned to connect foreign-talent recruitment to the specific industries and labour needs of individual regions. 5. Settlement becomes a central objective The Ministry is explicitly seeking to create a system connecting: education → regional employment → family accompaniment → settlement → local economic participation. 6. The 2027–2028 programme application process has opened Local governments can apply to participate in the new 2027–2028 Regional Specialized Visa programme from: 24 August 2026 → 10 November 2026 at 18:00.

From 1 June 2026, South Korea expanded the Top-Tier visa to include outstanding professors and researchers in science and technology. For this new science-and-technology route, applicants must satisfy at least one recognised excellence criterion and receive a recommendation from the Minister of Science and ICT. Examples of qualifying achievements include: internationally recognised scientific awards, including awards such as the Nobel Prize or Fields Medal; being listed among highly cited researchers or having recognised papers in major international journals; holding qualifying international patents or demonstrating significant technology-licensing income; or having substantial research experience in leading universities, global companies or major research institutions. A significant difference is that the science-and-technology route does not impose the same Korean-language requirement that applied to the original corporate Top-Tier route.