According to the Korean Educational Development Institute operated by South Korea's education ministry, there were 166,892 international students studying in South Korean universities as of April 2022. Among the foreign students, about 67,500 people were from China and 38,000 were from Viet Nam. Uzbekistani students were the third largest group with about 86,000 people.
The data showed that about 74 percent of international students came to South Korea to study for a degree while the rest came to attend language courses and other scholastic courses at universities and institutes. The majority of students from Viet Nam came to South Korea for short-term non-degree courses.
Data released by the Justice Ministry on October 10 showed that 29.9 percent of 64,904 D-4 visa holders who came to South Korea in June 2023 turned into illegal immigrants as of June 2023. The justice ministry categorizes foreign students as illegal immigrants when they cannot be contacted or are untraceable. The justice ministry predicted that the students who became illegal students quit their courses.
The largest group of illegal immigrants were from Viet Nam (22,760 people), followed by Uzbekistan (1,054 people), and Mongolia (820 people).
