Lee Hyo-sik is Finance Desk editor at The Korea Times. He manages finance-related stories on macroeconomics, banks, stocks, bonds, crypto etc. He is passionate about covering what's happening in Korea's financial industry and explaining it to both Korean and non-Korean readers. You can reach him at leehs@koreatimes.co.kr. Your insights and feedbacks are always appreciated.
Korea to extend visa dates for foreigners
By Lee Hyo-sik
The government has decided to extend visa expiration dates for Chinese and other foreign tourists who have canceled visits to Korea because of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak in hopes of luring them back.
State-funded tourism road shows will be held in China and Southeast Asia to attract more foreign visitors, while airlines, hotels, retailers and other hospitality-related businesses will jointly organize promotional activities to make visiting Korea more attractive for foreigners.
During a Cabinet Meeting presided over by President Park Geun-hye at Cheong Wa Dae, Thursday, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism unveiled these and other measures to revitalize the country’s sagging tourism industry, which has been hit hard by the declining number of foreign tourists since the first MERS case was reported in late May.
Tens of thousands of Chinese and other foreign visitors have canceled their visits to Korea because they were reluctant to come here for fear of contracting MERS. Rather than come to Korea, many Chinese went to Japan instead on the back of the weak yen and the Japanese government’s aggressive campaign to draw Chinese tourists.
Against such a backdrop, the government said it will prolong the tourist visa validity for Chinese and Southeast Asians from the current three months to six, while exempting them from visa fees until September when applying for new ones.
“We decided to ease visa rules for foreign tourists who have to get a visa to enter Korea, to encourage them to come,” Tourism Minister Kim Jong-deok said. “We will take other measures to get the MERS-hit tourism industry back on track. The government will help provide more premium tourism contents to foreign visitors and strengthen the industry competitiveness.”
Kim said the ministry will increase the Tourism Promotion and Development Fund by 330 billion won ($300 million) to implement a wide range of tourism-boosting measures.
In partnership with private businesses, the ministry will mobilize all available resources to increase the number of inbound tourists in July and August. To do so, it plans to hire a number of hallyu stars, who are popular in China and Southeast Asia, to spearhead the visit Korea campaign.
More tourism fairs will be held in China and other countries to persuade foreigners that it is now safe to come to Asia’s fourth-largest economy.
The Korea Grand Sale, which is normally held from December through February when the number of foreign visitors is low, will begin as early as September to attract more shopping-oriented foreign visitors.
The government will extend financial aid totaling 400 billion won to the struggling tourism industry, and help it develop and offer more tailored, premium tour content to non-Korean tourists.
Meanwhile, during the Cabinet Meeting, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance announced a set of measures to promote startups and make it easier for businesses to acquire other entities.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport also said it will provide larger incentives to individuals and companies reconstructing old buildings, while exempting airlines from airport user fees if they operate international routes from domestic airports, besides Incheon, Gimpo, Gimhae and Jeju.