September 11, 2025
SEOUL – South Korea concluded negotiations for the release of more than 300 nationals detained in a recent US immigration raid. They were arrested Thursday at the construction site of an electric vehicle battery plant operated by a joint venture between Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solution in Georgia. Reportedly, they are likely to return home voluntarily instead of facing deportation.
It is fortunate to receive news of their early release, but the very fact that this happened between South Korea and the US, which are allies, is shocking. There are mounting concerns that it could seriously undermine their economic trust.
The US is said to have taken issue with the Koreans working on B-1 visas for temporary business visitors and Electronic System for Travel Authorization ESTA permits. Both B-1 and ESTA prohibit work in the US.
To work legally in the US, they would need to obtain an H-1B specialty occupation visa, an L-1 visa or an E-2 visa. The L-1 allows multinational companies to transfer managers and employees from a foreign branch to a US subsidiary. The E-2 is for entrepreneurs who invest a substantial amount of capital to develop a US business. A limited number of H-1B visas are available annually.
Of course, it is against the law to work at the construction site on ESTA or B-1, but it is hard to understand the US move to tighten law enforcement while not addressing South Korean workers’ visa issues.
It takes a long time to receive visas to work in the US. Furthermore, the L-1 is out of reach for employees of small companies supplying equipment to large companies if they have no local subsidiary on US soil. Skilled engineers at supplier companies are essential to installing and checking equipment at a plant under construction. South Korean firms say they are forced to resort to ESTA and B-1 to meet the plant’s construction deadline because work visas are not issued in time, and it is difficult to find skilled local workers in the US.
South Korean companies have demanded consultations with Washington to increase the H-1B visa quota or grant work visas exclusively for Korean employees needed to carry out jobs related to investment projects in the US. Yet the H-1B quota remains so limited that Korean nationals say it is almost impossible to receive the visa. No progress has been made on a bill on separate visas for Korean workers, introduced to the House of Representatives in 2013.
Raids on illegal workers are usually random, but the US said the one at the Georgia construction site was not. It was preceded by a long internal investigation. The US could have given a warning or demanded corrective action beforehand, but it did not. It is questionable whether the alliance relationship was even considered.
If it remains difficult for South Korean employees to travel to the US to perform jobs, their employers will find it practically impossible to implement investment projects as planned. Investment plans will likely be frozen or put off.
Three South Korean battery companies — LG Energy Solution, Samsung SDI and SK On — are currently constructing plants at 10 US locations. Their combined investments amount to about 60 trillion won ($43 billion). There are also many other places in the US where Korean workers in the semiconductor, automotive and shipbuilding industries are needed to build facilities or train local American workers.
With the growth of South Korean investments in the US, there is an unavoidable need to dispatch more personnel. However, if South Korean workers are treated as illegal aliens because of visa issues that cannot be helped, it will be hard for South Korean companies to implement their investment projects steadily. Naturally, they question whether they should keep investing in the US.
Seoul must convey these doubts to Washington and demand a review of its visa system to prevent a recurrence. The detention incident should be a turning point in solving the visa issue.
