‘Migrants Are Also Residents of Gyeonggi Province’
First Dedicated Immigration Policy Bureau Established in Korea
Gyeonggi Immigration and Multicultural Society Integration Support Center Offers Consultation in 10 Languages
Gyeonggi Province is accelerating the expansion and reorganization of the Immigration and Multicultural Society Bureau, which was newly established in July last year to respond to the rapidly increasing foreign migrant population and to create an inclusive society free from discrimination, as the bureau marks its first anniversary.
Poster for the 1st anniversary of the launch of the Immigration and Multicultural Society Bureau. Provided by Gyeonggi Province
According to Gyeonggi Province on the 16th, the province recently opened the Gyeonggi Immigration and Multicultural Society Integration Support Center in Uijeongbu, further strengthening the functions of the existing Gyeonggi Foreign Residents Human Rights Support Center in Ansan.
The province also newly introduced multilingual consultation services, providing customized legal, labor, and daily life information to foreigners in 11 languages: Cambodian, Vietnamese, Lao, Thai, Uzbek, Russian, Filipino, Chinese, Mongolian, Myanmar, and English. Over 10,000 migrants used education and daily life consultation services over the past year.
The province plans to provide information on residence and daily life in multiple languages so that migrants can settle stably in the local community. By next year, it will establish a "Migrant Portal" with community functions for each nationality, aiming to enhance digital access to information.
In particular, the province is actively working to guarantee the right to education for foreign children.
This measure addresses the frequent cases in which foreign children are excluded from compulsory education and consequently miss the appropriate enrollment period. Gyeonggi Province became the first metropolitan government in the country to send school enrollment guides to 2,037 children of migrants, and it requested that the Ministry of Justice extend the period of temporary stay status for undocumented foreign children. For undocumented children who face difficulties with birth registration, the province is supporting the issuance of identification cards to guarantee their basic rights, such as access to education and healthcare.
To guarantee the right to education for undocumented foreign children, the province requested the Ministry of Justice to extend the period of temporary stay status for children who were either born in Korea or entered as infants (under 6 years old), have resided in Korea for more than six years, or are currently enrolled in or have graduated from elementary, middle, or high schools in Korea.
In addition, the province is leading efforts to guarantee the basic rights of children with a migrant background who face difficulties with birth registration by supporting the issuance of identification cards through the "Official Verification System," which ensures access to education and healthcare.
To meet labor demands in industry and attract outstanding foreign talent, the province designed the "Gyeonggi-type E-7 (Specific Activities) Regional Visa."
This applies to specific activities (E-7 visa) sectors such as advanced ICT and caregiving. The province secured a total of 630 regional visa quotas, accounting for 52% of the national E-7 quota of 1,210 people.
With the number of foreign students increasing, the province enacted the "Gyeonggi Province Foreign Student Support Ordinance" with the provincial council in June.
The province supports outstanding talent to settle and thrive in the region by establishing the "Gyeonggi Province Foreign Student Support Center."
Kim Wonkyu, Director of the Gyeonggi Province Immigration and Multicultural Society Bureau, said, "Since the launch of the Immigration and Multicultural Society Bureau, we have pursued a wide range of policies to create a society where both residents and migrants can grow together. Going forward, in line with the principle that 'Migrants are also residents of Gyeonggi Province,' we will realize an inclusive society where everyone is respected and lives together through leading immigration policies nationwide."
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