InterviewKorea to speed up path to permanent residency for STEM students

Korea is stepping up efforts to encourage the long-term settlement of international students, placing special emphasis on those in science and technology fields seen as critical to the country’s innovation and economic growth.

Facing a demographic crisis and shifting industrial demands, Korea is increasingly viewing international students as a vital source of its future workforce.

“Designing visa systems that enable international students to voluntarily contribute to areas where our society needs experts is a core policy priority,” said Lee Hyang-sook, director of the Residence and VISA Division at 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 in the effort is a revamp of the Korea Science and Technology Advanced Human Resources Visa Track — known as the K-STAR Visa — a fast-track residency program designed to bolster the country’s competitiveness as global competition intensifies for top science and engineering professionals, particularly in emerging fields such as artificial intelligence.

The program allows international students in science and engineering who earn master’s or doctoral degrees in Korea to obtain an F-2 residency visa through a university president’s recommendation, providing a clearer pathway to long-term settlement.

The ministry widened the K-STAR Visa track in December last year, extending eligibility from five designated institutions 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 said. “That growth will provide significant momentum for Korea’s drive to become a global science and technology powerhouse.”

In addition, reflecting the need to attract and retain top science and engineering professionals, the ministry has eased Korean-language requirements for graduate international students who take part in internships at corporate research institutes.

Previously set at Level 4, the Korean proficiency requirement has been lowered to Level 2, a change that took effect last November to allow more students early exposure to workplace culture and job functions.

Beyond visa policies focused on science and engineering students, the ministry is also piloting a regional visa program aimed at supporting international students outside the capital area — including Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province. Under the initiative, visa requirements are tailored to local conditions, including customized residency benefits.

Regarding potential value conflicts over visa policy among stakeholders — including universities, local governments and businesses — Lee acknowledged that differing priorities are inevitable given each institution’s distinct role and policy objectives.

She said that while local governments, universities and companies often call for streamlined visa procedures to attract international students and encourage their contribution to local communities, the ministry is tasked with safeguarding national borders and maintaining orderly foreign residency, including minimizing risks to the country’s social and economic order arising from illegal 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 differences, the justice ministry prioritizes broader social needs, urgency and policy suitability over individual institutional interests, while working to better align related systems across ministries.

For example, the government is extending greater visa incentives to international graduates in labor-shortage sectors — including root industries, specialized technical fields and caregiving — rather than to the broader student population.

“The ministry is coordinating closely with education and labor authorities to better link study-to-work pathways with visa and settlement frameworks,” Lee said. “We will continue to develop and expand demand-driven policy models to promote more constructive coordination among ministries, local governments and related agencies.”