More than half of the labor migrants sent to Korea last autumn did not return to Tajikistan, remaining to work illegally
Seoul
South Korea is delaying the allocation of quotas for workers from Tajikistan. The reason was the violation by labor migrants of the rules of stay in this country in the first organized recruitment, reports Asiaplustj.info.
On October 10, 2022, based on a bilateral agreement between Tajikistan and Korea, the first group of Tajik migrants flew to South Korea. This was the first case of official labor migration of Tajik citizens to the Republic of Korea.
The fate of the future agreement on attracting labor from Tajikistan depended on the results of the first organized trip.
However, more than half of the labor migrants sent to Korea last autumn did not return to Tajikistan, remaining to work illegally.
According to the migration service of the Ministry of Labor of Tajikistan, 28 Tajik migrants are currently in South Korea illegally, which complicates the process of concluding a labor agreement with this country.
“Tajikistan was not included in the list of foreign states from which labor is sent to South Korea. We hope that in the coming days this issue will be resolved positively, because the agreement has already been signed. Then we will talk about the allocation of quotas. If they are allocated, then a work visa will be issued for 1 year, and not for 6 months, as in the case of the UK,” the Migration Service of Tajikistan noted.
Now the Ministry of Labor of Tajikistan is working on the implementation of the EPS (Employment Permit System) employment permit system in medium and small enterprises in the Republic of Korea.
In May 2023, a delegation of Korean experts visited Tajikistan to study the migration system and got closely acquainted with the activities of relevant institutions and structures, the agency reports.
“One of the difficulties and the main condition for the entry of the Korean side into this system is the return of citizens from the Republic of Korea,” the department noted.
Currently, the Ministry of Labor, Migration and Employment of the Population of Tajikistan is appealing to the relatives of the offending migrants to urge them to return to their homeland. The Ministry of Labor promises that after returning, “Citizens will not be subject to administrative penalties and will be able to travel to Korea again.”
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Courtesy: Central Asian Light (Posted on July 14, 2023)
