Home > Business > Industry

Samsung's Taylor plant progress hit by visa jitters after Georgia raid

Published: 11 Sep. 2025, 18:44

A foundry factory owned by Samsung Electronics in Taylor, Texas [SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS]

A looming visa bottleneck is threatening to delay the launch of Samsung Electronics' advanced chip plant in Taylor, Texas, as Korean equipment suppliers scramble to secure U.S. work visas amid heightened immigration scrutiny.

“By December at the earliest, or January or February at the latest, we need to dispatch personnel to Taylor, Texas,” a senior executive at a Korean semiconductor equipment company told the JoongAng Ilbo. “But we’re worried we won’t get enough visas in time.”

Referring to the recent detention of Korean workers at a battery plant in Georgia, the executive said, “This is a serious problem for us, too.” His company supplies equipment to Samsung’s Taylor foundry.

The company had already banned short-term business trips under the U.S. Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) since June and was in the process of identifying essential personnel to apply for visas.

“Since this is the first time a state-of-the-art 2-nanometer foundry line is being built in the United States, we anticipate various uncertainties. We need our people on the ground early,” the executive said. “But this incident has raised concerns that a flood of visa applications or delays may complicate the process.”

Concerns over tightened U.S. visa controls are mounting in the semiconductor industry. The Taylor facility, slated to begin operations next year, may face delays if the dispatch of Korean engineers is held up.

A chartered Korean Air plane waits to bring Korean workers back home on Sept. 10 at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport [YONHAP]

Construction of the Taylor plant, which began in 2022, was 99.6 percent complete as of the end of last year. But further progress stalled as Samsung failed to secure customers. While the facility's exterior is finished, installation of key equipment has been on hold.

That changed in July, when Samsung signed a $16.5 billion deal with Tesla. The company has since resumed preparations to open the plant, reportedly ordering equipment and arranging for personnel to be sent from Korea.

Industry sources say the companies supplying the Taylor plant are most at risk. Due to the complex vendor hierarchy of the chip industry — primary, secondary and tertiary suppliers — the operation of a single facility requires coordination among numerous firms.

Small and midsize partners, in particular, often struggle more with visa approvals than large conglomerates. In the recent case involving the LG Energy Solution-Hyundai Motor Group joint battery plant, around 250 of the 300 detained workers were from partner companies linked to LG Energy Solution or Hyundai Engineering, the construction contractor.

Personal belongings of workers who were kept in detention at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Folkston, Georgia, are organized by staff at LG Energy Solution and Hyundai Motor Group on Sept. 9. [YONHAP]

“Even if we hire 80 percent of the work force locally, the remaining 20 percent must be skilled Korean workers to lead operations,” another equipment firm executive said. “But applying for a proper work visa costs over $2,000 per person, which is a huge financial burden.”

A company that has worked with Samsung since the Austin plant days noted that “some firms have relied on hiring local residents or international students with the promise of green card sponsorship because of the high cost of sending Korean expatriates.”

But now, even green card applications face stricter scrutiny by U.S. immigration authorities, limiting that workaround.

Adding to the pressure is the growing expectation in the United States for job creation tied to large manufacturing facilities. According to local reports in Taylor, a Samsung executive recently told a chamber of commerce event that the plant would begin operations in 2026 and employ up to 2,000 people.

Korean nationals and foreigners are released from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Folkston, Georgia, on Sept. 11, after seven days of confinement. [YONHAP]

As of the end of last year, Samsung’s Taylor campus had generated 3,664 jobs, both directly and indirectly, excluding those related to construction.

However, local employment expectations can sometimes fuel resentment against the influx of foreign workers. When TSMC requested 500 visas for Taiwanese engineers to install equipment at its Arizona plant in January, local labor unions strongly protested.

With time remaining before the plant's launch, the industry is monitoring the situation closely.

“Samsung Foundry has just secured a major client and is preparing for a leap forward,” one industry source said. “Because the issue affects a wide range of suppliers, visa delays could ripple across the entire industry.”

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 PARK HAE-LEE [[email protected]]