ICCK

BRIEF ON CONSULAR MATTERS

    Following establishment of full fledged diplomatic relations between Republic of India and Republic of Korea in 1970-73, bilateral relations have expanded manifolds.

2. Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) which came into force from January 1, 2010, provided boost to the bilateral diplomatic and trade relations. During the past few years several high level visits have taken place, prominent among them being Indian Prime Minister Shri Narender Modi’s visit to South Korea in May 2015 and South Korean President Mr Moon Jae-in’s recent visit to India from July 8 to 11, 2018.

3. One of the important results achieved during south Korean President’s visit, besides signing of a number of agreements, is introduction of Visa on Arrival in India for Koreans which will come into effect from October 1, 2018. The categories of Visa on Arrival include Business, Tourism, Conference and Medical, not exceeding 60 days with double entry. The facility will be available at six airports i.e. Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangaluru and Hyderabad.

4. The total number of Visas issued to Korean people by the Mission (excluding the e-visa figures) in 2017 was 40014. In 2018, till July end 20,858 Visas have been issued. Out of it, Business Visa (62.5%) and Tourist Visa (20.62%) form major percentage, followed by Employment Visa (6.09%), Entry Visa (2.92%), and Student Visa (2.35%).

5. Number of Indians living in South Korea as on 30.06.2018 is 12,367. Indian nationals form a floating population in South Korea as a major percentage comes here on Employment Visa to work with multinational companies such as Hyundai, Samsung, LG, TATA, Daewoo, TCS, Mahindra & Mahindra etc. for 1-3 years mostly on contract basis. There is a significant presence of Indian students and academicians in the Korean universities.

6. As the Indians living in ROK come from almost all states of India, there are a number of Indian Community Associations formed on ethnic/regional lines. The Associations which can boast of largest Indian membership is Indians in Korea (IIK) which comprises mainly of professionals. Indian Merchants Association (IMA) represents textile merchants of Indian origin. Other prominent associations are Telgu Association, Tamil Association, Marathi Mandal in Korea (MMK), Korea Kannada Koota, Bengali Community in Korea, Indian Student Association (ISA), IIT Alumni Association, Korea Manipuri Association(KMA), Daejeon Researchers Community of India and Indian Women Association.

7. These associations undertake various cultural as well as social activities every year including organizing major Indian festivals such as Holi and Diwali. These activities not only provide the community an opportunity to socialize with other members and stay in touch with Indian culture but also spreads Indian culture among Korean and other foreigners living in ROK and hence play an important role in promoting India-Korea relations.

8. The Consular Wing of the Mission, besides providing Visa to Korean citizens and Consular Services to the Indian Community is also responsible for the welfare of Indians residing in Korea. For this purpose the Indian Community Welfare Fund (ICWF), has been established by the Government of India mainly to tackle expenditures in unforeseen and emergency situations. Consular Wing also keeps the Community members informed about the activities / events taking place in the mission involving Indian community.

9. Consular Wing requests all the Indian community members to get registered with the Mission on their arrival so that they could be kept informed regarding the developments relating to the community in ROK.

July 2018

Source : Embassy of India,Seoul