Vietnamese Gang Caught Forging and Selling Alien Registration Cards

Earned About 25 Million Won in One Month from Selling Fake Foreign Registration Cards

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Kim Chunsu] A group that forged foreigner registration cards overseas and sold them to illegal foreign residents staying in Korea has been caught.

The Gwangju Immigration Office announced on the 23rd that it has sent to the prosecution without detention A, a naturalized Vietnamese woman (28 years old), and her accomplice B, a Vietnamese man (37 years old), on charges of violating the Immigration Control Act.

A is accused of conspiring with B, who illegally stayed in Korea and left for Vietnam in May this year, to sell forged foreigner registration cards to 92 unidentified foreigners over the course of one month starting in August, charging about 280,000 KRW per person, and earning a total of approximately 25 million KRW.

B posted advertisements on his SNS in Vietnam stating that he was “selling forged foreigner registration cards,” recruiting illegal foreign residents in Korea who needed forged foreigner registration cards, and received payment transfers to a domestic bank account under A’s name.

Subsequently, B sent the payment along with foreigners’ personal information to a presumed ID forgery maker in China, requesting the forgery. The forger then delivered the forged foreigner registration cards to illegal foreign residents in Korea via international courier.

The forged foreigner registration cards were confirmed to be so meticulously forged that ordinary people unaware of security features would find it difficult to distinguish their authenticity by appearance.

A Gwangju Immigration Office official stated, “Amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing foreign labor shortages, we expect more cases where illegal foreign residents attempt to purchase forged foreigner registration cards to easily get jobs by pretending to be legal residents. We will expand our investigation accordingly.”