KATHMANDU, Nov 4: The Government of South Korea is establishing its visa center in Nepal in a bid to facilitate Nepali workers seeking employment in South Korea.
In a meeting with Finance Minister Rameshore Khanal, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Nepal Park Tae-young informed that the South Korean government is launching its visa center soon. The East Asian country has been providing work permits to Nepali citizens to employ in its manufacturing and agriculture sectors.
As per a press statement issued by the Ministry of Finance, the Korean envoy has also requested the Government of Nepal to utilise skills of the Korea returnees by facilitating them in entrepreneurship inside Nepal. He also pledged to facilitate Korean investors to invest in Nepal to promote local products.
South Korea is one of the main attractions for Nepalis seeking employment abroad. The main reasons are South Korea’s comparatively higher wages, regulated labor market, and worker-friendly environment.
The South Korean government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Nepal in 2007 to recruit workers under the EPS (Employment Permit System) and the recruitment process has been ongoing since 2008. According to the EPS Korea branch under the Department of Foreign Employment, South Korea allocated 5,300 slots in the manufacturing and agriculture–livestock sectors for 2025.
In fiscal year 2024/25, a total of 14,224 Nepalis took labor permits to work in South Korea. According to the government statistics, more than 110,000 Nepalis went to the country as migrant workers, while 50,000 of them have been working at present.
