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Of the 697 Thai citizens who took a direct Jeju Airlines flight to Jeju Island in South Korea between August 2nd and 6th, 417 were denied entry and had to return to Thailand.
According to the Jeju Immigration Office, of the 280 Thai nationals who entered the country on three-day tours earlier this week, 55 have disappeared, and the Korean Immigration Service is working to track them down.
South Korean officials say Thai tourists prefer entering South Korea via Jeju Island because they won't have to go through the process of applying for a South Korean electronic travel permit (K-ETA).
Under South Korea's Electronic Travel Authorization Program (K-ETA), citizens from 112 countries, including Thailand, who are visa-exempt from the country, are required to apply for a travel permit online before departure. However, the South Korean government allows tourists visiting Jeju Island, a popular tourist destination, to do so without presenting an electronic travel permit.
Starting June 1st, South Korea will tighten controls on tourists visiting Jeju Island.
South Korea is considered a top destination for many Thai illegal immigrants because they can earn around 60,000 baht per month (US$1,700), significantly more than in Thailand.
Furthermore, starting June 1st, South Korea tightened controls on tourists visiting Jeju Island. Accordingly, the island will reopen to international visitors and reinstate the 30-day visa-free policy, which had been suspended since February 2020 to prevent the spread of Covid-19. However, according to KoreaTimes, this policy is being exploited by many foreign tourists to try to overstay their permitted stay in South Korea.
Recently, 23 tourists from Mongolia, part of a group of 156, absconded in South Korea. One of them was apprehended at Jeju port while attempting to board a boat bound for Mokpo city in the southwest. Two others were found working illegally on Jeju Island.
This week, 112 Thai citizens out of 183 who arrived in Jeju on a chartered flight were denied entry on August 2nd for unclear reasons related to tourism. The very next day, another 108 Thai visitors out of 182 were also denied entry in Jeju.
In response to this situation, the South Korean Ministry of Justice announced that the K-ETA system of the Korean Immigration Service will be implemented on Jeju Island, while affirming that this system will not reduce the number of tourists visiting the island. K-ETA will verify the information, documents, and itinerary of those wishing to enter Jeju Island visa-free before their departure.
