U.S. to allow South Koreans to work at sites under temp visas, but clear solution elusive

The United States has agreed to allow South Koreans to work on equipment at U.S. investment sites under existing temporary visas and open new channels to help its ally send workers to do business there, Seoul’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday

The United States has agreed to allow South Koreans to work on equipment at U.S. investment sites under existing temporary visas and open new channels to help its ally send workers to do business there, Seoul’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

But U.S. officials at a working group meeting offered no new answers to South Korea’s argument for wider access to U.S. visas for specialty workers, despite reaffirming a commitment to advance the trade and investment partnership, the ministry said.

The working group was set up in the aftermath of a massive immigration raid at a Hyundai Motor car battery facility under construction in the U.S. state of Georgia in September, where hundreds of South Korean workers were arrested.

The arrests, which stunned the South Korean government and public, highlighted the lack of access to the right class of U.S. visas for specialized South Korean workers needed at investment sites.

The U.S. side, made up of officials from the Departments of State, Homeland Security and Commerce, made clear that South Korean workers can install, service and repair equipment needed as part of South Korean business investment in the U.S., using the ESTA visa waver program and the B-1 temporary visas, South Korea’s foreign ministry said.