Court Rules in Favor of Steve Yoo Again in Appeal Over Entry Visa

An appellate court has upheld a lower court ruling that the decision to deny a Korean entry visa to singer Steve Seungjun Yoo (48, American name Steven Seungjun Yoo) should be revoked.

The 8-2 Administrative Division of the Seoul High Court (High Court Judges Kim Bong-won, Lee Young-chang, and Choi Bong-hee) ruled in favor of the plaintiff in the lawsuit filed by Yoo against the Consul General in Los Angeles, maintaining the same decision as the first trial.

The court did not provide detailed reasons for the ruling in the courtroom.

This trial marks the appeal of Yoo's third lawsuit filed against the Consul General in LA after his visa issuance was rejected.

Yoo, who debuted in 1997 and worked as a singer in South Korea, had promised on television to fulfill his military service. However, in January 2002, he left the country for performance purposes and obtained U.S. citizenship, thereby evading his military duties.

Amid growing public criticism against Yoo, the Ministry of Justice restricted his entry based on the Immigration Act.

The Ministry of Justice determined that Yoo fell under the category of a person "recognized as having reason to believe that they may engage in conduct detrimental to the interests or public safety of the Republic of Korea."

In August 2015, after turning 38, Yoo applied for a visa at the Consulate General in LA under the Overseas Korean (F-4) residency status.

At the time, the Overseas Koreans Act stipulated that even if someone lost their nationality for the purpose of evading military service, overseas Korean residency status could be granted once they turned 38.

However, the LA Consulate General refused to issue the visa in September of the same year, prompting Yoo to file his first lawsuit seeking to overturn the decision.

Although Yoo ultimately won the case at the Supreme Court following a remand trial and a re-appeal, the LA Consulate General refused to issue the visa once again, stating that "Yoo's avoidance of military obligations poses a risk of harming national interests."

In response, Yoo filed a second lawsuit in October 2020, and once again won a final victory at the Supreme Court in November 2023.

However, when the LA Consulate General rejected his visa application yet again in June 2024, Yoo filed a third lawsuit in September of the same year.

In August of last year, the court handling the first trial of the third lawsuit ruled in favor of Yoo, stating, "The disadvantage inflicted on the plaintiff is excessively large compared to the public interest gained through the visa issuance refusal, thus violating the principle of proportionality and constituting an illegal deviation and abuse of discretionary power."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.