A large number of foreigners who entered Jeju as visa-free tourists and subsequently overstayed their legal stay have been caught in a recent crackdown.

The Ministry of Justice plans to strengthen crackdowns on illegal stays by cooperating with related agencies, including the National Police Agency, to expand patrols in areas with high concentrations of foreigners and crime-prone zones.

The Korea Immigration Service under the Ministry of Justice announced on September 30 that it caught a total of 232 foreigners during a intensive crackdown on illegal stays following visa-free entry into Jeju from September 7 to 28.

The intensive crackdown will continue until November 11.

From January to September this year, the Ministry of Justice denied entry to 3,103 foreigners, determining that they were unfit to enter Jeju, such as by possessing forged passports.

The Ministry of Justice uses the Advance Passenger Information System to preemptively block high-risk individuals, such as Interpol fugitives and those with domestic criminal records, from boarding flights.

The Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Ministry of Employment and Labor, National Police Agency, and Korea Coast Guard held a working-level subcommittee meeting of the Border, Stay, and Safety Working Committee under the Foreigner Policy Committee today to discuss response measures.

The Ministry of Justice decided to expand joint patrols in areas with dense foreign populations and vulnerable crime areas in Jeju, and strengthen public relations campaigns for foreigners to comply with basic public order and crime prevention activities in cooperation with local governments.

It also plans to conduct joint crackdowns on brokers of illegal stays and employment matching as well as unauthorized departures from the island, while strengthening information sharing with the police and coast guard.

To prevent foreigners who entered without a visa from leaving for other regions without permission, the government is also pushing to introduce a pre-departure verification system that checks whether foreign passengers are permitted to leave the island when issuing domestic boarding passes departing from Jeju.

Under the Jeju International Free City policy, Jeju has allowed foreigners of nationalities excluding terrorism-sponsored states to stay for 30 days without a visa since 2002.

The Ministry of Justice has decided to step up joint crackdowns with the National Police Agency against illegal foreign delivery riders, and expand investigative cooperation regarding organized illegal employment and brokerage by delivery companies, driving without a license, and the fraudulent use of other people's accounts.

Disciplinary standards will also be tightened so that international students caught working in restricted employment sectors, such as delivery services or nightlife establishments, will in principle be subject to forced deportation or departure orders regardless of the number of offenses.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport also plans to impose fines on relevant delivery platform operators upon receiving information on regulatory violations such as illegal employment and disciplinary actions from immigration authorities.

Immigration and foreigner offices nationwide will conduct an intensive crackdown on immigration offenders at workplaces in 69 security-concern areas.

The authorities will focus on cracking down on illegal paid transport, driving without a license, and other unlawful acts while strengthening joint patrols in crime-prone areas.

The Ministry of Justice plans to materialize cooperation systems such as information sharing and joint crackdowns among related agencies, and push for institutional improvements regarding structural problems that induce illegal employment and hiring.

Acting Minister of Justice Lee Jin-su stated that the ministry will closely cooperate with relevant agencies to sternly respond to illegal activities such as illegal foreign delivery riders, and create a safe and orderly foreigner stay environment that gives peace of mind to the public.

(Photo: Yonhap News)