Despite valid visa, Samet Yesiltas faces hostility amid rise in illegal foreign drivers

Samet Yesiltas poses for a photo in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, during an interview with The Korea Herald on Dec. 7. (Choi Jae-hee/The Korea Herald)
Samet Yesiltas poses for a photo in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, during an interview with The Korea Herald on Dec. 7. (Choi Jae-hee/The Korea Herald)

For Samet Yesiltas, a 27-year-old Turkish food deliverer in South Korea, wearing a face cover is essential. It's not just to shield him from the cold, but to hide his non-Korean appearance.

“When I stop at traffic signs, I often hear curse words from Korean delivery workers, and even ordinary drivers” as soon as they realize he's not Korean, Yesiltas said, speaking in Korean.

“It happens a lot these days, but I can never get used to it.”

Married to a Korean, Yesiltas holds a valid visa to work in delivery services, but as the number of foreigners working illegally in his field has been rising, he is often mistakenly lumped in among them.

Under current law, foreign residents holding F-2, F-5 or F-6 visas are permitted to work delivery jobs. However, a recent surge in foreign drivers working illegally on student visas and using borrowed Korean identities has sparked fierce criticism among Korean drivers. This backlash is now extending to those who are working legitimately, like Yesiltas.

“There is a growing tendency to view all foreign delivery riders negatively, regardless of whether they are legal or illegal (in their work status). Some Korean riders I used to get along with now ignore me,” said Yesiltas, who delivers to addresses in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province.

Although he feels frustrated about the misunderstandings, he can also relate to the concerns of Korean workers when he sees other foreign deliverers working illegally and driving without a license or insurance. He also believes his earnings have decreased partly due to the increase in competition from unpermitted foreign drivers.

“Last year, I made around 350,000 won ($240) a day doing nearly 100 deliveries, but now I only make about 70 deliveries, earning a maximum of 250,000 won,” he said. “I’ve seen many delivering with tourist visas. Watching them ride motorbikes without a license or insurance makes me angry.”

Throughout the interview, Yesiltas appeared to have no difficulty expressing himself in Korean.

He did not attend school to learn Korean. His Korean teacher was primarily his wife, who is Korean. His textbooks were Korean dramas and films, which he watched multiple times until he understood. Customer messages that come with food delivery orders also pushed him to study harder, he added.

”Customer messages can sometimes be very complicated. With limited Korean proficiency, how can one accurately understand a customer‘s request like ’go up the stairs at the back of the building and leave the food at the second door on the left‘?“

Samet Yesiltas receives a box of donuts to deliver from the owner of 42nd Street Donuts. (Choi Jae-hee/The Korea Herald)
Samet Yesiltas receives a box of donuts to deliver from the owner of 42nd Street Donuts. (Choi Jae-hee/The Korea Herald)

Yesiltas first came to Korea in 2019 for travel and fell in love with his wife at first sight, he said. They tied the knot in Korea in January 2021, and they now have a 2-year-old son.

Before starting delivery work in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, he worked as a day laborer in various places, such as factories and logistics centers.

While on a delivery earlier this year, he got into a traffic accident.

“I underwent five surgeries and spent three months in the hospital. I still feel pain in my foot whenever I ride the motorbike,” he said, adding that his right big toe had to be amputated.

The incident not only affected his health, but also left his family with a debt of 30 million won to cover his medical expenses.

Yesiltas said that he now works over 10 hours a day, enduring the pain of the injuries.

“My wife has heart disease, so I’m the sole breadwinner. That’s why I have to work even harder,” he said. “But when my son hugs me, everything feels better, even when I’m sick.”

Yesiltas plans to quit doing delivery work when he's ready to embark on the next chapter of his life in Korea.

“When I woke up after surgery in the hospital, I thought about my child, asking myself in Korean, ‘What should I do?’,” he said.

It was not an easy decision, but his next move feels like destiny: starting his own restaurant that offers a fusion of Turkish cuisine and Western dishes. He plans to open it in February at Pyeongtaek’s international market.

Over the past four years of shuttling between various eateries and their customers to deliver food, he has inadvertently gained a deeper understanding of the local restaurant industry.

In hindsight, it provided valuable market research on running a restaurant business in Korea, covering aspects like store interiors, peak business hours and the impact of weather on operations. Additionally, he said he worked in restaurants and dessert shops in his home country from the age of 15.

Yesiltas hopes to capture Koreans’ taste buds at his soon-to-open restaurant.

“I dream that one day Baek Jong-won will visit my store. I will work hard until that day,” he said, referring to the Korean restaurant guru and celebrity chef.