[Incheon] Incheon Economic Office proposes easing of employment permit system for foreign workers

The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority proposed easing regulations on foreign workers' employment permits for foreign-invested companies in the free economic zone at the 31st National Council of Free Economic Zone Commissioners held at Songdo International City's G Tower.

The employment permit system for foreign workers, which marks the 20th anniversary of its implementation this year, is a workforce system that allows foreign workers who enter on non-professional work visas (E-9).

The Ministry of Employment and Labor said there were 961,347 foreign workers who entered the country through the employment permit system from 2004 to last year, up from 3,167 in the first year of its introduction to 101,148 last year.

However, under the current system, foreign-invested companies are still suffering from manpower shortages as foreign employment is prohibited for "manufacturing workplaces with more than 300 employees or mid-sized companies in the Seoul metropolitan area with more than 8 billion won in capital."

The Incheon Economic Office has come up with an improvement plan to ease regulations to allow foreign-invested companies in the free economic zone to hire non-professional foreign workers regardless of their size.