Korean employees wait in line in entrance of a United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Georgia on Sept. 8. [YONHAP]
The Ministry of Overseas Affairs mentioned Monday that Seoul and Washington reached an settlement to ship residence the entire roughly 300 Koreans detained at a development website in Georgia on a chartered flight.
The Overseas Ministry added that it’s asking U.S. authorities to make sure that the detainees should not subjected to unfair remedy, although issues stay that they could face disadvantages in the event that they try to re-enter the USA sooner or later.
“We’re in detailed talks with the USA so that every one of our nationals can return residence rapidly and safely by chartered flight,” a ministry official advised reporters on Monday. “As soon as native administrative procedures are accomplished, we plan to repatriate them as quickly as attainable.”
On Saturday, the ministry arrange a process power led by Overseas Minister Cho Hyun to coordinate the safety of abroad nationals, negotiating with Washington for the return of these detained within the type of “voluntary departure” reasonably than deportation.
As of Monday morning, consular officers had met with about 250 of the roughly 300 detainees. The Korean authorities’s stance is to carry everybody again, however the interviews additionally accounted for the chance that some could select to stay to problem the legality of their arrests.
“If a person doesn’t wish to depart voluntarily, we can not power them,” the official mentioned. “In the event that they want to contest the case legally, that’s their alternative.”
The official added that the price of the chartered flight might be borne by the businesses concerned.
![Foreign Minister Cho Hyun answers questions from lawmakers regarding the recent crackdown by U.S. immigration authorities on Korean companies in Georgia during a session at the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, western Seoul, on Sept. 8. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/09/08/184f6230-dcdc-4794-bbed-e3de55da72c7.jpg)
Overseas Minister Cho Hyun solutions questions from lawmakers relating to the latest crackdown by U.S. immigration authorities on Korean corporations in Georgia throughout a session on the Overseas Affairs and Unification Committee held on the Nationwide Meeting in Yeouido, western Seoul, on Sept. 8. [YONHAP]
Earlier, Cho Ki-joong, appearing consul basic in Washington, mentioned at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention heart in Folkston, Georgia, that the detainees are anticipated to return “round Wednesday.”
Even when the case is resolved by means of voluntary departures, people might face obstacles when making an attempt to re-enter the USA.
“It varies relying on visa kind and immigration standing, however we are attempting to attenuate potential disadvantages,” the ministry official mentioned.
“Nonetheless, U.S. authorized procedures have to be revered, so outcomes depending on every individual’s state of affairs might be tough to vary,” the official mentioned, hinting at disadvantages that could be imposed relying on the kind of visa a person holds or the size of their keep within the nation.
Authorized specialists have warned that those that labored whereas in the USA below the Digital System for Journey Authorization, or ESTA, system reasonably than enterprise visas resembling a B-1 might face extra extreme penalties.
“Even with voluntary departure, data will stay with immigration authorities,” mentioned Moon Sang-il, a U.S.-based immigration lawyer. “This might make it tough to re-enter the USA or get hold of a visa sooner or later.”
![A person seemingly wearing cuffs on their hands and feet walks toward a vehicle in a photo taken from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's website. The photo was reportedly taken during a raid at an LG Energy Solution-Hyundai Motor Group battery plant construction site in Georgia on Sept. 4. [SCREEN CAPTURE]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/09/08/96e043d6-9840-41d1-aed7-669a7c138eb9.jpg)
An individual seemingly sporting cuffs on their fingers and ft walks towards a car in a photograph taken from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s web site. The photograph was reportedly taken throughout a raid at an LG Vitality Answer-Hyundai Motor Group battery plant development website in Georgia on Sept. 4. [SCREEN CAPTURE]
“Even with out an overstay file, being positioned in deportation proceedings alone can lead to visa disadvantages if the case is just not correctly defined,” mentioned lawyer Choi Kyung-kyu.
Overseas Minister Cho Hyun is scheduled to depart for Washington later Monday to finalize talks with U.S. officers on administrative procedures. He may even meet U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio to debate visa points, which lie on the root of the disaster.
In precept, overseas employees in the USA want visas resembling H-1B for specialists or L-1 and E-2 for company transferees, however the strict necessities and prolonged processing instances have led many corporations to depend on “loophole visas.”
The Overseas Ministry mentioned it has not but confirmed additional instances of irregular visa use however is working carefully with U.S. authorities to forestall a recurrence.
This text was initially written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the assistance of generative AI instruments. It was then edited by a local English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY PARK HYUN-JU, SHIM SEOK-YONG [[email protected]]
