By Kim Se-jeong
Naturalized male citizens may be subject to the country’s mandatory military service.
The government said Tuesday it will begin discussion this year on whether to oblige foreign nationals who acquire Korean citizenship to serve in the military as all able-bodied men here have to.
Currently, military service for naturalized Koreans is voluntary. Adding naturalized Koreans to the pool of mandatory military service is expected to fill the gap caused by the decreasing number of native born Koreans.
The announcement was part of new government policy plans for foreigners covering the next five years.
Starting this year, the government will toughen requirements for permanent residence visa applicants and require permanent residents to renew their visa every 10 years.
The government will also expand the tax delinquency screening system to all 34 immigration offices so foreigners will not get their visa renewed if they have delinquent tax payments. Currently, the screening takes place at 18 immigration offices.
The administration will discuss requiring inbound travelers from visa-waiver countries to apply online for travel permission before their departure in order to prevent smuggling.
The new plans will also bolster human rights protections for marriage immigrants and temporary workers.
The government will make guidelines for temporary workers’ minimum living conditions and distribute them to employers. For violators, the government will put restrictions on them when hiring additional temporary workers. Currently, employers who wish to hire temporary foreign workers are required either to make a request or report to the government. Much has been written and reported about poor working conditions of temporary workers.
The government will revise the law so employers with a record of sexual violence cannot hire foreign workers.
To help marriage migrants who suffer domestic abuse, the government will open a one-stop comprehensive help center in 2019.
It will also increase the number of shelters for such women and loosen their requirements for entry. As of last year, 26 such shelters were up and running across the country and the government projects to open 12 more by the end of this year.
The government will expand housing support for abused spouses and start to provide financial support as well.
It will resume dispatching a special official to Vietnam _ where most marriage migrants come from _ to handle marriage fraud. This was suspended in 2016.