Ministry of Justice conducts first joint government crackdown on illegal aliens this year

From April 15 to June 30, the Ministry of Justice and related ministries will conduct a joint crackdown on unregistered (illegal) foreigners.

This crackdown is being carried out for the first time this year by the Ministry of Justice in order to strictly and consistently respond to the issue of illegal residence at a government-wide level, marking the second year of the ‘Five-Year Plan to Reduce Illegal Immigration (2023-2027).

Participating government agencies include five ministries, including the Ministry of Justice, the National Police Agency, the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and the Korea Coast Guard.

Key areas of crackdown include ▲crimes against foreigners illegally residing in the country, including drugs, ▲entertainment workers, ▲illegal employment in the construction industry, ▲illegal entry and employment, and false refugee agency practices. In most cases, foreigners who are not simply residing illegally but have specifically violated Korean law are subject to crackdowns.

In this joint crackdown, the Ministry of Justice plans to focus on cracking down on crimes against foreigners that threaten the safety of the public, infringements on people's livelihoods, and acts of promoting illegal stay and taking strict measures, including forced deportation and entry ban.

An official from the Ministry of Justice said, “If the crackdown is refused without justifiable reasons, we will obtain a warrant and carry out the crackdown, and we will take strict action against those who interfere with work, such as injuring the crackdown public officials, by filing criminal charges for obstruction of official duties.” “In addition, we will do our best to comply with due process in the crackdown process and protect the human rights of foreigners,” he said.

Minister of Justice Park Seong-jae said, “An immigration and immigration policy that the public can understand is one that appropriately deploys foreign workers in necessary fields and at the same time effectively manages illegal stay.” “Going forward, we will consistently pursue policies to reduce illegal stays, including crackdowns, to establish an order of stay for foreigners,” he said.

However, in the case of last year, the number of people who newly became illegal immigrants was found to be more than the number of people who were deported by the Ministry of Justice through a joint government crackdown, calling for a change in the Ministry of Justice's policy.

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