2.51 million foreigners residing in South Korea, the largest number of Chinese nationals

The number of foreign residents in South Korea has reached its highest level in four years since 2019, before the spread of the COVID-19 virus. According to the December 2023 statistical monthly report released by the Ministry of Justice's Immigration and Foreigner Policy Headquarters.
As of the end of December last year, the number of foreign residents was 2,507,854. This is an 8.1% increase from the previous month and an 11.7% increase from last year.
This figure corresponds to 4.89% of the entire population of the Republic of Korea, an influx of foreigners due to the spread of COVID-19.
This is the highest since 2019, when the economy slowed down. This figure is also close to the 5% ratio of foreigners found in multicultural societies by the Japan Economic Development Cooperation Agency.
Among foreign residents last year, those who stayed for a long period of 90 days or more registered with the authorities and
There were 1.88 million foreigners (75%) who applied for housing, and 620,000 (25%) short-term residents. By nationality, China has the largest population (940,000 people), followed by Vietnam, Thailand, the United States, and Uzbekistan.
Kistan was next. The number of illegal foreign residents also increased by 3.0% from the previous year to 420,000. The illegal immigration rate decreased slightly from 2022.
Some experts believe that this trend of increasing numbers of foreign residents is already affecting Korean society.
Some view the country as having entered a multicultural society, and the importance of the Korean government's foreign policy is expected to increase. Last month, at the Foreign Policy Committee held by the Prime Minister, the government decided to
The ``4th Basic Plan for Foreign Policy'' (2023-2027), which includes policy directions, has been finalized. The bill included the systematization of immigration influx and integration policies, and the establishment of a new Immigration and Immigration Management Agency.
In the Fourth Basic Plan, the term ``foreigner policy'' was officially changed to ``immigration policy.'' It also included active immigration policies, such as securing industrial power by attracting international students.