1 detained in Georgia raid held U.S. employment permit, Foreign Ministry data shows
Published: 12 Sep. 2025, 17:16
Updated: 12 Sep. 2025, 17:46
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- SEO JI-EUN
- [email protected]
![Immigration and customs agents restrain workers who were apprehended at a battery plant construction site on charges of violating U.S. immigration rules in Savannah, Georgia. More than 300 Korean nationals were reported to be captured during the raid. [SCREEN CAPTURE]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/09/12/643c6e11-d57f-4e85-b066-756bad7d9c9f.jpg)
Immigration and customs agents restrain workers who were apprehended at a battery plant construction site on charges of violating U.S. immigration rules in Savannah, Georgia. More than 300 Korean nationals were reported to be captured during the raid. [SCREEN CAPTURE]
A Korean worker holding a valid U.S. employment permit was among hundreds detained in a recent immigration raid at an LG Energy Solution-Hyundai Engineering factory in Georgia, sparking criticism in Seoul over what lawmakers described as heavy-handed enforcement and an outdated visa system that fails to reflect Korea’s expanding investment in the United States.
According to data submitted to Rep. Han Jeoung-ae of the Democratic Party by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hyundai Engineering and LG Energy Solution, the worker had an Employment Authorization Document (EAD), which legally allowed them to perform duties. Despite the valid status, the worker was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in what lawmakers and company officials called an “excessive” application of the law.
The majority of Koreans detained in the raid, however, had entered on ESTA — the visa waiver program — or short-term B1 business and B2 tourist visas. Subcontractor employees without U.S. subsidiaries were ineligible for long-term expatriate visas such as the L1, leaving them reliant on what critics called “loophole” arrangements.
Hyundai Engineering reported that 158 subcontractor staff were arrested and detained, including 67 Koreans. Of those, 60 held ESTA permits, six carried B1 or B2 visas, and one had the EAD.
By contrast, none of the company’s 68 headquarters employees, who all held L1 or E2 expatriate visas, were targeted in the crackdown.
LG Energy Solution said both headquarters and subcontractor workers were affected.
Among 46 Korean headquarters staff, 24 were traveling under ESTA and 22 on B1 or B2 visas. Of 204 subcontractor employees, 86 held ESTA permits and 118 were on B1 or B2 visas.
Rep. Han warned that the raid is likely to cause delays in the construction of the multibillion-dollar battery plant project in Georgia, where Korean firms are making some of their largest investments in the United States.
“The U.S. crackdown at the Georgia battery plant construction site is expected to delay construction by at least two to three months,” she said. “This incident shows that the U.S. visa system is failing to keep pace with the reality of Korea’s expanding investment in the United States.”
The lawmaker urged the Foreign Ministry to move quickly in negotiations with Washington to ensure that Korean technicians traveling on B1 visas are allowed to work at factory construction sites. She also called for more flexible issuance of B1 visas for future business travel, warning that a lengthy process to create new visa categories or quotas could expose Korean firms to further risks.
A total of 317 employees affiliated with the Korean companies were detained in the United States during the recent crackdown. Of those, 316 have since returned to Korea on Friday, with one remaining in the United States.
BY SEO JI-EUN [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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