Not long ago, I received an inquiry from a person holding an F-4 visa about applying for an F-5 permanent residency.
Through the consultation, I learned that the client's mother had acquired South Korean nationality.
In this case, since the mother had already acquired South Korean nationality, the client, as a child of a South Korean citizen, was eligible to apply for special naturalization immediately, which is an exception to the principle of 'permanent residency before nationality'.
Just like many other overseas Koreans, the client spoke Korean almost like a native speaker, except for the accent.
I asked, "You already speak Korean very well, and since you've graduated from a school in Korea, you're practically a South Korean citizen with all the basic knowledge you need. Wouldn't it be better to aim for South Korean nationality by studying a bit and taking an interview, rather than spending time completing the Social Integration Program?"
Although I asked this question, in truth, I knew why they were applying for permanent residency. Most clients who seek consultation are already well aware of what they can do.
Among various cases, those who qualify for permanent residency or naturalization mostly prefer permanent residency over South Korean nationality. The reason is simple.
If you choose South Korean nationality, you have to renounce your original nationality,
but by acquiring permanent residency, you maintain your original nationality and gain a status that's almost indistinguishable from that of a South Korean citizen. This was also the reason for the client's preference.
However, due to the strengthened income requirement implemented in March 2022, obtaining permanent residency was not easy for the client either. This is because the Gross National Income (GNI) per capita, which was around 37 million KRW in 2020, was announced to be over 40 million KRW in 2021, an increase of more than 7%. The income requirement for the E-7 category of professional workers, which had to meet 80% of the GNI, also increased significantly.
This updated GNI standard is not only applicable for permanent residency but also for all cases where income verification is required based on the GNI standard, such as marriage visas.
However, the client is a person of Korean descent. In my view, while the immigration policy may be strict, it is still more favorable towards people of Korean descent than it is towards pure foreigners who have no Korean ancestry.
※ When I say that the immigration policy treats overseas Koreans well, I mean that they are treated much better than pure foreigners, not that the policy is inherently good.
Below are the cases and required documents for overseas Koreans to apply for an F-5 visa.
Eligibility and Required Documents
Those who have stayed in South Korea for more than 2 years on the basis of overseas Korean (F-4) qualification and meet any one of the following conditions.
※ In case of domestic residence registration, the period of residence abroad is also included in the continuous stay period of more than 2 years.
1.Individuals whose annual income at the time of application for permanent residency is equal to or more than the Gross National Income (GNI) per capita of the previous year as announced by the Bank of Korea. ※ 2021 GNI 40,024,700 KRW ※ If combined with cohabiting family members, the applicant's income must be at least 50% of the annual income requirement. (Excluding cases where the applicant is raising a minor child or is a minor) - Certificate of income amount, withholding tax receipt
2. Individuals aged 60 or over receiving a pension from abroad, and whose annual pension amount is equal to or more than the GNI per capita of the previous year as announced by the Bank of Korea. ※ 2021 GNI 40,024,700 KRW
- Pension certificate / Pension deposit passbook
3. Individuals who paid property tax of 500,000 KRW or more in the previous year - Certificate of tax payment
Or individuals who have a net asset in their own name such as home ownership, lease deposit, savings, etc., and the average net assets from the previous year's 'Household Financial Welfare Survey' are 360 million KRW or more. - Credit Information Inquiry Certificate/Property Tax Payment History Certificate/Lease Contract ※ Property tax payment performance or net assets can be combined with cohabiting family members (spouse, parents, children) who have lived together from one year before the date of application for permanent residency, but the applicant's property tax payment performance or net assets must be at least 50% of the standard amount.
*Excluding cases where the applicant is raising a minor child or is a minor
4. Individuals with an annual trade performance of 2 billion KRW or more with Korean companies - Certificate of employment, Certificate of registry, Business registration certificate, Export/Import performance certificate, Annual tax payment certificate
5. Individuals who have invested more than 500,000 USD (about 600 million KRW) in South Korea - Business registration certificate, Certificate of registry, Business place and housing lease contract, Foreign investment company certificate, Domestic investment evidence
6 .Representatives of overseas Korean organizations recognized by the government of the country of residence, (including those who have served as representatives in the past 3 years) or corporate representatives recommended by the head of an overseas diplomatic mission - Recommendation letter from the head of an overseas mission
Common Documents Required
1. Integrated Application Form / Identity Guarantee
2. Permanent Residency Qualification Review Report
3. Passport / Household Register / Chinese ID Card / Foreigner Registration Card
4. Certificate of Kinship (including parents/spouse/children)
5. Overseas Criminal Record Inquiry - Consular Confirmation / Basic Morality Exemption
6. Proof of Residence
7. Tuberculosis test result
8. Government revenue stamp 200,000 KRW
As seen above,
whether you apply based on GNI, tax payment performance, or assets you hold,
the important thing is that it's not just your own income, tax payment performance, or assets, but a combination of family income/assets is possible.
In the case of the client, it was difficult to achieve 40 million KRW solely based on personal income. After the father passed away, it was only possible to reach over 40 million KRW when combined with the mother's income.
The key point here is that you can combine it with cohabiting family members.
This means you can only apply for family combination standards if the family members are living together.
In other words, if the registered address of the family members is the same, you can apply using the family combination standard.
If the family lives separately, you cannot apply the cohabiting family combination standard.
In the case of the client, since they lived separately from the mother, the above standards could not be applied. Therefore, we decided to proceed with the process of permanent residency after moving the address first.