Ministry of Justice officers maintain a briefing on the Korea Science and Technology Advanced Human Resources Visa Track, often known as the Ok-STAR Visa program, at Gwacheon Government Complex, Sept. 23, 2025. Courtesy of Ministry of Justice
Korea is stepping up efforts to encourage the long-term settlement of worldwide students, inserting particular emphasis on these in science and expertise fields seen as vital to the nation’s innovation and financial progress.
Facing a demographic disaster and shifting industrial calls for, Korea is more and more viewing worldwide students as a significant supply of its future workforce.
Lee Hyang-sook, director of the Residence and VISA Division on the Ministry of Justice
“Designing visa systems that enable international students to voluntarily contribute to areas where our society needs experts is a core policy priority,” mentioned Lee Hyang-sook, director of the Residence and VISA Division on the Ministry of Justice in a written interview with The Korea Times.
“In line with this policy direction, the ministry is working with universities to more tightly connect study-to-settlement pathways for international students in science and technology fields, while redesigning visa routes that link education and employment to regional and industry demand,” she added.
One key change within the effort is a revamp of the Korea Science and Technology Advanced Human Resources Visa Track — often known as the Ok-STAR Visa — a fast-track residency program designed to bolster the nation’s competitiveness as world competitors intensifies for prime science and engineering professionals, significantly in rising fields comparable to synthetic intelligence.
The program permits worldwide students in science and engineering who earn grasp’s or doctoral levels in Korea to receive an F-2 residency visa by means of a college president’s suggestion, offering a clearer pathway to long-term settlement.
The ministry widened the Ok-STAR Visa observe in December final yr, extending eligibility from 5 designated establishments to 32 universities nationwide.
“We expect the expansion to raise the annual intake of high-caliber research talent from about 100 to as many as 500 to 600,” Lee mentioned. “That growth will provide significant momentum for Korea’s drive to become a global science and technology powerhouse.”
In addition, reflecting the necessity to appeal to and retain prime science and engineering professionals, the ministry has eased Korean-language necessities for graduate worldwide students who participate in internships at company analysis institutes.
Previously set at Level 4, the Korean proficiency requirement has been lowered to Level 2, a change that took impact final November to enable extra students early publicity to office tradition and job features.
Beyond visa insurance policies targeted on science and engineering students, the ministry can also be piloting a regional visa program geared toward supporting worldwide students outdoors the capital space — together with Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province. Under the initiative, visa necessities are tailor-made to native situations, together with relaxed eligibility requirements and customised residency advantages.
Local governments are allowed to take part in designing visa situations — together with monetary necessities, part-time employment and internship alternatives — for students enrolled in regionally specialised tutorial packages.
“The regional visa program will be formalized to broaden the framework that supports international students in finding jobs and settling in local communities,” Lee mentioned.
Regarding potential friction over visa coverage amongst stakeholders — together with universities, native governments and companies — Lee acknowledged that differing priorities are inevitable given every establishment’s distinct position and coverage targets.
She mentioned that whereas native governments, universities and corporations usually name for streamlined visa procedures to appeal to worldwide students and encourage their contribution to native communities, the ministry is tasked with safeguarding nationwide borders and sustaining orderly overseas residency, together with minimizing dangers to the nation’s social and financial order arising from unlawful stays or unauthorized employment.
“As the ministry overseeing visa screening and employment authorization, we have little choice but to apply stricter standards than some stakeholders might prefer,” Lee added.
To bridge interagency variations, the justice ministry prioritizes broader social wants, urgency and coverage suitability over particular person institutional pursuits, whereas working to higher align associated methods throughout ministries.
For instance, the federal government is extending higher visa incentives to worldwide graduates in labor-shortage sectors — together with root industries, specialised technical fields and caregiving — relatively than to the broader pupil inhabitants.
“The ministry is coordinating closely with education and labor authorities to better link study-to-work pathways with visa and settlement frameworks,” Lee mentioned. “We will continue to develop and expand demand-driven policy models to promote more constructive coordination among ministries, local governments and related agencies.”