By Jung Min-ho
Chinese tourists who come to Korea by cruise ships will be allowed to travel the country for three days without a visa, according to the Ministry of Justice and the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), Friday.
Foreign visitors on three cruise ships ― Costa Serena, Sapphire Princess and Quantum of the Seas ― can enjoy the visa-free pilot policy until the end of March, and then the ministry will decide whether to maintain the policy.
Chinese tourists, who account for the majority of tourists to Korea on the three luxury cruise ships, are expected to be the biggest beneficiaries of the policy.
Previously, Chinese tourists could enjoy the visa-free stay only when visiting Korea through group package tour programs, but now individual travelers can also receive the benefit. So far, Jeju Island has been the only part of Korea where all Chinese visitors could stay without a visa.
This is the latest government policy to boost tourism, which is highly dependent on the Chinese. According to the KTO, the number of cruise tourists to Korea this year so far is 1.45 million. Among them, more than 1 million are Chinese.
The Federation of Korean Industries, the country’s largest business lobby group, as well as the Incheon Metropolitan Government openly asked the ministry to ease visa restrictions to bolster tourism.
The number of cruise tourists is expected to reach as many as 2 million this year, double the 1 million in 2015, according to the KTO.
Yet there are increasing concerns over the government’s loosening border controls in return for more money from tourists.
In April, five Chinese who came to Incheon by the Quantum of the Seas went missing upon their arrival. In October, 2015, 13 Chinese who arrived in Busan by the Sapphire Princess disappeared while shopping in the city.
Many are concerned that more tourists and illegal immigrants may bring security issues to the nation, saying the long-term costs to solve them may be as high as what is earned.
Such worries are becoming a reality on Jeju Island, where foreigners from 180 countries have been able stay for 30 days without a visa since 2008.
The number of foreign tourists without visas on the island jumped to 629,724 last year from 69,569 in 2009, revitalizing the local economy and causing a boom in real estate.
Meanwhile, the number of illegal immigrants there has soared from around 100 to 4,300 during the same period. Also, 393 foreigners were arrested for illegal activities in 2015, up from just 90 in 2009. Between January and July this year, police arrested 347 foreigners, up 59.2 percent from the same period last year. Among them, 69.2 percent were Chinese.
The ministry said that, even during the pilot policy period, it will cancel the visa waiver benefit for cruise ships from which more than 20 passengers disappear for illegal stays. “We’ll monitor the program and decide whether to continue it or not, and also whether to expand it,” a ministry official said.