20,000 South Korean Students in the U.S. Face Uncertainty Over Visa Restrictions

[Anchor]

The U.S. Trump administration, which is pursuing strict immigration policies, has announced that it will limit the stay of international students to four years. Students currently studying in the U.S. or preparing to study abroad are in a state of shock following the news of these sudden visa restrictions.

Reporter Hong Yeongjae has the story.

[Reporter]

Online communities for those studying in the U.S. have been flooded with posts from students worried about whether they will be able to continue their studies.

Students and their parents are feeling anxious, particularly those whose academic paths have been extended due to military service or leaves of absence, as well as those preparing for employment in the U.S.

[Parent of a student serving in the military: My son is currently in the military, so the school has already terminated his visa. We were thinking about him finding a job in the U.S. later, so now we are wondering what we should do.]

With the difficulty of obtaining U.S. visas already having increased since the launch of the Trump administration, the announcement that residency reviews will become stricter for students in master's and doctoral programs—which typically take more than four years—is an added burden.

[Student preparing for a doctoral program: I have felt that they are somewhat uncooperative regarding visa matters. Some people are turning their eyes to other countries (instead of the U.S.), and some are just returning to Korea.]

As of last year, there were approximately 24,000 South Korean nationals staying in the U.S. on F visas for students, J visas for exchange visitors, and I visas for foreign journalists.

For now, students must comply as much as possible with the U.S. government's more stringent visa renewal guidelines, such as clearly proving the purpose and plan of their stay.

[Kim Ho-jun, Director of Cheongdam One Study Abroad Agency: There is a lot of concern about what to do if the extension, which used to be handled by the school, now has to be applied for directly with immigration and gets delayed. Since the renewal process has become more complicated, it is best to move up your schedule and prepare in advance.]

The Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Los Angeles announced that it will soon hold an information session on the changed visa system to conduct a Q&A session for international students.

(Video Editing: Kim Jong-mi, Design: Kang Yoon-jung)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.