Fewer Koreans seek emigration overseas

The number of South Koreans seeking emigration is on the decrease, mostly due to a declining global economy that has forced countries to tighten their immigration quotas, the Foreign Ministry said yesterday.

"It is not because less people are trying to emigrate, but because countries, citing their rising unemployment rates amid the economic recession, are choosing to freeze their immigration quotas," said Choi Dae-hee of the ministry`s consul services department.



In particular, the phenomenon was marked in countries such as the United States, Canada and New Zealand, which are popular destinations for Koreans and also the nations with the strictest immigration regulations, Choi said.

According to the 2009 Diplomacy White Paper, the emigration figure last year contracted by over 40 percent, down to 2,293 from 4,127. It was a second consecutive year decline following the 20.3 percent decease in 2007 from 2006, the white paper showed.

When including the figures of those who registered for emigration abroad -which an increasing number of Koreans are choosing to do - the overall number of Koreans emigrating fell to 21,000 last year, down from 23,000 in 2007 and 26,000 in 2006.

More people are opting for overseas emigration registration due to the lower costs and also because it is more convenient, giving the emigration hopefuls a chance to tour the countries they are seeking to reside in, the Foreign Ministry said.

In terms of destination, less Koreans emigrated to the United States, with the number of emigrations to that country falling by over 50 percent in 2008 from the year prior. The emigration rate to Canada also fell by 46 percent from 2007, and as much as 60 percent for New Zealand.

Australia, on the other hand, saw an increase of 16.7 percent last year compared to 2007, according to the white paper figures.

Ministry officials said Korea`s emigration toll peaked in the 1970s and 80s, and gradually declined starting in 2000.

By Kim Ji-hyun



(jemmie@heraldm.com)