Local governments, universities step up support for international students' regional settlement in Korea: Pohang council launched, Gyeongnam job fair, Jeonnam-Gwangju forum

Local governments and universities in Korea are increasingly moving to help international students stay and work in the regions after graduation. On Oct. 29-30, Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City held a policy forum on foreign residents attended by about 100 people, including officials from its cities, counties and districts. On Nov. 2, the city of Pohang and three universities launched the “Consultative Council for International Student Employment and Settlement Support.” The same day, Gyeongsangnam-do (South Gyeongsang Province) held an international student job fair in Changwon with 16 companies from the province taking part. In the space of five days, three regions took up “employment and settlement,” going beyond “recruitment.”

Pohang: City and three universities form council on international student settlement

The launch ceremony of the “Pohang Regional Consultative Council for International Student Employment and Settlement Support” was held in Pohang on Nov. 2. It was organized by the International Cooperation Team of Handong Global University's Office of External and International Affairs. The four participating institutions are the Pohang City Jobs and Youth Division, Pohang University's International Education Development Institute, Sunlin University's International Exchange and Education Center, and Handong Global University's Office of External and International Affairs. Twenty officials from the four institutions attended.

The council has set out four tasks. The institutions will share employment and settlement information with one another and look for ways to connect students with local companies and jobs. They will jointly respond to the employment and daily-life problems international students face, and jointly propose improvements to support programs. All of these are plans to be pursued going forward.

At the ceremony, participants reviewed the council's operating direction and draft bylaws. The council plans to finalize the bylaws and complete its membership at its next meeting, and then hold regular meetings. The council was formed amid closer cooperation between Pohang City and local universities following Handong Global University's selection as a Glocal University.

Professor Shin Hye-in of Handong Global University said, “There are limits to what a university can do on its own to help international students put down roots in the region.” Shin added, “International students can truly settle only when Pohang City backs them with institutional support, universities develop talent, and local companies join in by providing jobs.”

Gyeongnam: On-site interviews with 16 companies and visa consultations in one place

Gyeongsangnam-do held the “2026 Gyeongnam International Student Job Fair” and a “settlement support lecture” at the Changwon Exhibition Convention Center (CECO) on Nov. 2. Sixteen companies from the province, in sectors including aviation, shipbuilding and IT, held one-on-one on-site interviews and recruitment consultations with international students. The event was held in conjunction with the “2026 Gyeongnam Global University Innovation Festa (G-NEX).”

Consultation booths were also set up at the venue. The National Institute for International Education (NIIED), the Gyeongnam Regional Office of SMEs and Startups and the Gyeongnam Visa Support Center helped with résumé writing and offered consultations on residence status and work visas. In the first part of the morning settlement lecture, Shin Seo-jin, head of the Daejeon Global Administrative Agent's Office, a private office, explained residence management, including visa extensions and changes and switching to a work visa after graduation. In the second part, the Gyeongnam Foreign Residents Support Center gave guidance on school life and adjusting to the region.

Based on Korean Educational Statistics Service data (compiled every April), the number of international students in the province rose about 89% in three years, from 2,874 in 2023 to 5,427 in 2026.

Kim Seong-gyu, director-general of the Education and Youth Bureau of Gyeongsangnam-do, said, “We will continue to support both employment and settlement so that international students can work and stay in Gyeongnam.”

Jeonnam-Gwangju: Policy forum on “international students and the region, together”

Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City held the “2026 Foreign Resident Policy Forum and Workshop for Cities, Counties and Districts” in Jindo on Oct. 29-30. About 100 people attended, including officials from 27 cities, counties and districts, staff from universities and foreign resident support centers, and international students.

The theme of the first day's policy forum was “International Students and the Region, Together.” A Ministry of Justice official introduced the region-based visa system. Chungcheongnam-do presented its Chungnam-style work-study program. Research fellows from the Jeonnam Women and Family Foundation and the Jeonnam Research Institute presented on international students' transition to the labor market, their employment situation and tasks for improvement. The panel discussion included officials from the Gwangju Immigration Office, the Korea Industrial Complex Corporation, the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency, Chosun University and the Jeonnam Agro-Industrial Complex Association.

Kang Eun-soon, director-general of the Family Policy Bureau of Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, said, “I hope this will be an opportunity to create together a virtuous cycle in foreign resident policy that goes beyond attracting talent and leads to training, employment and settlement.”

Background ①: Two regional visas currently in operation

There are broadly two visa programs currently in operation that relate to regional settlement. One is the region-specific talent visa (F-2-R). It grants residence (F-2) status, upon recommendation by the head of the metropolitan/provincial government, to foreign nationals who wish to live and work in program areas such as depopulation areas. Program areas are limited to basic local governments, among depopulation areas and areas of concern for population decline, that have applied for a quota. The current standards are set out in Ministry of Justice Notice No. 2026-248, which took effect on Aug. 3.

The Minister of Justice may set different requirements by region, so additional conditions may apply depending on the local government. A recommendation letter is valid for three months from the date of issue. For the first two years after approval, holders must in principle live in the recommended region and be employed or run a business there. Some metropolitan/provincial governments allow a type in which the place of residence and the place of work differ within the same metropolitan/provincial area. After two years, holders can move to another program area within the same metropolitan/provincial area.

The other is the regional (metropolitan) visa pilot program. Under it, the Ministry of Justice and metropolitan/provincial governments design visas tailored to regional characteristics; it runs from June 13, 2025, to Dec. 31, 2026. The student (D-2) track is operated in Seoul, Busan, Incheon, Gwangju, Gangwon, Chungbuk, Chungnam, Jeonbuk, Jeonnam and Jeju (as divided before the merger). Gyeongnam and Gyeongbuk operate only the specific activities (E-7) track.

Background ②: Reforms the government is pursuing

According to The Korea Economic Daily, the Ministry of Justice announced on Aug. 24 that it would reorganize the regional visa around regional industries and settlement in the regions. Under the plan, metropolitan/provincial governments would design D-2 and E-7 together, and incentives would be given when regional-track international students find jobs in region-designated industries after graduation and switch to E-7. The plan also includes cutting the overall quota from 6,790 in 2025-2026 to a maximum of around 3,000 in 2027-2028. The call for proposals for the “2027-2028 Regional Visa Official Program,” open to metropolitan/provincial governments, closes on Nov. 10. The selection results and the specific details of the incentives have not yet been decided.

Government statistics are also focusing on regional settlement. An analysis of international students who graduated between 2019 and 2025, released by the Ministry of Justice on Sept. 4, shows that in every region except Gangwon, half or more of employed international students found jobs in the region where their university is located. The rate of leaving Korea after graduation was 81.3% for doctoral graduates, 71.8% for bachelor's, 71.3% for master's and 26.4% for associate degree holders, in that order. The Ministry of Education on Sept. 8 also cited “insufficient linkage between attracting top talent and regional settlement” as a problem and presented “settlement and career support” as one of its four key strategies.

What international students should check

Regional settlement support differs in content and stage from region to region. The Pohang council has only just launched and has not yet finalized its bylaws. If you are considering a job in the region after graduation, it is advisable to first check notices from your university's international office and from local government support agencies for foreign residents. F-2-R requires you to live or work in a recommended region (cities, counties and districts, among depopulation areas and similar areas, that have applied for a quota). Pohang and Changwon are not on the list of program areas for 2025-2026. However, Gyeongbuk and Gyeongnam allow a type in which holders live in a recommended region and work in another city or county in the same province, and Gyeongbuk also allows a type in which holders live elsewhere in the province and work in a recommended region. You should also separately check any additional requirements of the local government concerned.

Region-by-region F-2-R conditions are summarized in Region-specific F-2-R visa: 10 regions compared, and the job-seeking visa after graduation in Guide to the D-10-1 job-seeking visa after graduation. Pre-event information on the G-NEX fair is available at Changwon G-NEX international student job fair.

--- Event details are based on regional media reports (Nov. 1-5, 2026); F-2-R requirements on Ministry of Justice Notice No. 2026-248 (effective Aug. 3, 2026); and detailed F-2-R operations, program areas and regional visa operations on the Ministry of Justice sojourn manual (Nov. 2, 2026 edition).