Due to the rapid decline in the local population, foreigners wishing to reside in local areas (refers to areas other than Seoul and Gyeonggi-do designated by the Minister of Justice) are issued regional-specific (F-2-R) visas with greatly relaxed visa conditions. there is. This visa is issued on the condition of residing in a specific region, and students living in metropolitan areas such as Seoul and Gyeonggi-do can also change to a regional-specific (F-2-R) visa on the condition of working and residing in the region.
1. General requirements
The requirements for a regionally specialized (F-2-R) visa are largely as follows.
1) Must have a Korean associate's degree or higher, or satisfy GNI per capita of 70% or more in the previous year.
2) After issuing the visa, you must live and work in an area with a declining population for more than 5 years and start a business.
3) Must have Korean language skills above a certain level
2. Advantages and disadvantages of regional-specific (F-2-R) visa
Regional specialty (F-2-R) visas are initially granted for one year and are extended every two years thereafter. Additionally, if you change to a regional-specific (F-2-R) visa, you can invite your spouse and minor children to live together in Korea, and your spouse can also engage in employment activities by receiving separate permission from the immigration office.
On the other hand, the region-specific (F-2-R) visa has the disadvantage of requiring continuous residence in the countryside rather than the city for a certain period of time (5 years) or more. Nevertheless, considering the reality that it is very difficult for foreign students to change their visas to workable visas after graduating from college, they must settle in Korea with a regionally specialized (F-2-R) visa and then obtain another visa such as a permanent resident (F-5) visa. It would be very attractive to change this to .
To summarize, the regional specialty (F-2-R) visa is a visa that has no special advantages for foreigners who are currently working in Korea under a special activity (E-7) visa or who are planning to graduate from college in Korea. This is a very good visa that provides an opportunity for foreigners on a job-seeking (D-10) visa who were unable to find a job after graduation to settle down while working in Korea.
3. Things to keep in mind when applying for a regional-specific (F-2-R) visa
Regional specialty (F-2-R) visas have some differences in requirements for each local government, and there are disadvantages such as cancellation of the visa if duplicate applications are found. Therefore, you should check which local government best suits your current conditions and wishes.
* Please visit the office for consultation regarding the number of people assigned and requirements for each local government.
Therefore, there is a need to receive consulting on the visa application before applying for a regionally specialized (F-2-R) visa, and legal consultation with a professional lawyer will be necessary during this process. I will provide you with the best legal help based on my experience working as an immigration officer.
* This is related to immigration policy as of the posting date. For specific details, we recommend that you contact the office for consultation (TEL: 031-8019-9328, Email: info@immikr.com).