Easier immigration for foreign investors

FSS to streamline ‘finance investor express card system’ in July


Financial Hub Korea, a unit of the Financial Supervisory Service, announced Sunday that the immigration process for foreign investors will be shortened, starting later this month.

“The improved finance investor express card system will ensure a shorter and streamlined immigration process and a wider scope of entitlements and entry privileges for foreign financial investors,” the FSS said in a statement. “The system will come into effect in July.”

It was adopted in February 2010 by financial regulators in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice in a bid to simplify the immigration process for the executives and employees of foreign financial companies in Korea.

Those who have the card were allowed to use an express lane for expedited immigration procedures.

Under the previous system, all applicants had to go through a review process with the financial regulator after their documents were submitted to Fn Hub Korea for verification of qualifications. 

The new procedure, however, will no longer require a review process and will allow the card to be issued promptly for those who meet the requirements. It is expected to shorten the time for issuing the card from an average three weeks to maximum 10 days. The post-issuance management measures, instead, will be strengthened.

To meet the basic requirements, applicants for the express card should hold a D-7 (supervisory intra-company transfer) visa or F-5 (permanent residency) visa and have no record of violating the Immigration Control Act.

The new system will also expand the scope of card grantees based on branch offices’ contribution to the Korean financial economy.

While the express card was previously granted only to heads and deputy heads of branch offices with an operation fund of 7 billion won or more, the new system includes employees recommended by the head of a branch office whose operation funds are in excess of 150 billion won.

In addition, those with an F-5 visa who were not entitled to the express card will now be eligible for it under the revised system. Applying for a new card after losing their passport will become easier as well.

Those who changed their passport numbers after losing passport and thus need to apply for a new express card had to undergo the same process they passed for the initial apply.

Under the new system, however, the qualification-verifying step will be waivered if documents including a police report and a copy of passport re-issuance application are submitted. The cards will be immediately re-issued on request, as opposed to 21 days on average under the past system.

“It is expected that the immigration process will become more efficient and convenient for an increasing number of foreign executives and employees of foreign financial firms with faster card issuance and wider scope of grantees. This will help increase foreign financial investment and improve Korea’s global standing as a financial center,” said the FSS through statement.

By Park Min-young  (claire@heraldcorp.com)