Gov't to codify entry ban on military service evaders, cite singer Steve Yoo's case

The Ministry of Justice is moving to enshrine a permanent entry ban on individuals who evade mandatory military service into the law, with officials citing the decades-long case of Korean American singer Steve Seung-jun Yoo as a catalyst.

Cha Yong-ho, the commissioner of the ministry's Korea Immigration Service, announced the plan at the ministry's monthly work meeting on Friday.

“We will clearly define the legal grounds of the Immigration Act to bar entry for those who evade military service and cause public controversy, such as in the case of Steve Yoo,” Cha said.

The ministry plans to revise the Immigration Act's enforcement regulations to explicitly list those who evade military service as a category that is subject to entry bans, which officials argue is necessary to close a legal gap that has repeatedly allowed challenges to the ban in court.

“For a person to enjoy the full rights of a Korean citizen, then avoid their military duty, renounce their citizenship and return to seek personal gain — that is antisocial conduct, and one could outright call it unpatriotic,” said Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho when directing officials to conduct a comprehensive legal review of entry bans on military evaders.

Yoo debuted as a singer in Korea in 1997 and publicly pledged on television to complete his mandatory military service. In January 2002, however, he left the country for a performance engagement and subsequently obtained U.S. citizenship, which exempted him from service. 

The Justice Ministry responded by restricting his entry into the country, citing provisions against individuals deemed likely to harm national interests or public safety.

The singer applied for an overseas Korean (F-4) visa at the Korean Consulate General in Los Angeles but was rejected. 

He then filed suit to overturn the decision and won at the Supreme Court, but the consulate again declined to issue the visa. The litigation has continued, with a second-instance appeal in the third round of legal proceedings currently underway.

By codifying the entry ban in statute, the ministry aims to provide future cases with improved legal footing and reduce the scope for further court challenges.

During the same meeting, the ministry also announced its plans to finalize reforms to Korea's breach of trust statute by next month. 

Jung stated that officials broadly agreed on the need to give business executives “greater latitude in making management decisions,” and he called on relevant bureaus to move more quickly regarding the reforms.

Lee Eung-cheol, the director general of the ministry's prosecution bureau, said that officials had analyzed more than 3,300 court rulings from the past five years, as well as academic research and commissioned studies. A draft bill is under discussion with academics and advisory committee members, with a reform proposal expected to be finalized in June.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. 

BY HAN YOUNG-HAE [[email protected]]