Few foreigners to be eligible for dual citizenship

By Lee Tae-hoon

Starting Jan. 1 next year, dual citizenship will be given to outstanding foreigners and Koreans under a revised law that is part of the government’sefforts to prevent a brain drain and attract global talent.

However, only a small number of foreign nationals are expected to enjoy the privilege as the government has raised the bar quite high, according to Cha Gyu-geun, director of the Nationality and Refugee Division at the Korea Immigration Service.

Cha said the government has also decided to scrap the proposal for a point system and make the definition of highly skilled professional ambiguous so that a group of 12 government and civic panels will determine who the beneficiaries will be.

Critics say the government’s decision may also leave room for discrimination based on skin color and nationality. South Korea has yet to adopt an anti-discrimination law.

With only a few days left before the law goes into effect, the Immigration Service is not in a position to say who can gain dual Korean citizenship as the government plans to finalize details in a meeting early next year.

The revised law stipulates that even if an applicant is highly talented and deemed qualified for dual citizenship, only those who can contribute to the national interest are eligible. It’s another ambiguous clause that would prompt subjective judgment to play a crucial role.

The Immigration Service will only allow people to file an application in Korea. Cha expects those who have no living experience in Korea will be unlikely to receive the dual citizenship under the “exceptionally talented category” as the screening panel will likely reject them on the grounds that they have yet to illustrate loyalty to Korea.

He says the screening process for dual citizenship would take six months to two years and those seeking the status will have to apply for another visa to stay in Korea during this period.

Cha has asked the Ministry of Justice to consider benchmarking the EB-1 visa, a green card that the United States issues to those with “extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics which has been demonstrated by sustained national or international acclaim and whose achievements have been recognized in the field through extensive documentation.”

Currently, dual citizenship is prohibited and naturalization is allowed only to those who have stayed here for five years or longer or those who are married to Korean nationals and have lived here for at least two years.