Number of brokers falsely filing for asylum increases, exposes loopholes in immigration system
Published: 27 Apr. 2026, 11:33
Updated: 27 Apr. 2026, 19:06
![Minister of Justice Jeong Seong-ho checks out the interview room at Incheon International Airport on April 23. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/04/27/d9fe2701-bec6-4684-ac56-43d002f7cd7b.jpg)
Minister of Justice Jeong Seong-ho checks out the interview room at Incheon International Airport on April 23. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]
The number of brokers who have been caught helping people remain in Korea through false asylum filings is increasing, which critics say exposes loopholes in a process that already takes those who legitimately seek refuge more than four years to complete.
One case involves a Turkmenistan national who, through social media in early 2025, promised to help fellow nationals who wanted to move to Korea obtain refugee status. The broker provided travel itineraries and hotel reservations that would allow the group to pose as tourists.
After they entered Korea, they applied for asylum with the broker’s help. The broker was reportedly paid approximately 750,000 won ($508) per case.
The broker was able to execute the plan because they had previously obtained a G-1-5 visa — which allows holders to stay in the country during the refugee application screening process — using false claims.
The broker was sentenced by the Incheon District Court in January to eight months in prison, suspended for two years.
Another broker posed as a building landlord in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi, four years ago and sold fake lease contracts required for asylum applications. The broker took advantage of the fact that there were not enough refugee case officers, meaning that many documents could not be routinely verified in person.
The broker provided 123 false lease contracts to those seeking refugee-related stay status and collected about 70,000 won to 100,000 won per case between March 2022 and October 2023. After being indicted, the broker received a one-year prison term, suspended for two years, on Jan. 13 for violating the Immigration Act.
The number of such instances is rising, the Ministry of Justice said on Sunday. A total of 109 people were caught arranging fraudulent refugee applications over the past five years, with nine being caught in 2021, 14 in 2022, 24 in 2023, 24 in 2024 and 38 in 2025. All 109 defendants were subject to criminal or administrative action, the ministry said. Of them, 57 received prison sentences, and 13 were fined.
![A monitor at Incheon International Airport displays international flight departure schedules on Oct. 12, 2025 [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/04/27/0b7d12a9-424b-4d59-b46e-d8c4385320f2.jpg)
A monitor at Incheon International Airport displays international flight departure schedules on Oct. 12, 2025 [NEWS1]
Critics say that brokers are exploiting loopholes in the refugee system. Under the Refugee Act, the government is required to allow a person to stay in Korea until their refugee application review process is complete. A JoongAng Ilbo review of multiple court rulings in refugee cases found that the process — which typically includes the applicant filing an asylum application, undergoing a screening, objecting to their petition’s results and proceeding to administrative litigation through the Supreme Court — took more than four years.
There is also no limit to the number of applications that a person can file or to the period between each application. That means that even people with little chance of being recognized as refugees can stay in Korea by repeatedly filing applications and lawsuits. One foreign national, for example, first applied for refugee status in 2013 and has remained in Korea for 13 years by applying for asylum and undergoing related litigation seven times.
There was an average of 3,136 lawsuits for refugee cases per year over the past five years, according to the Justice Ministry. Plaintiffs prevailed in only 19 first-instance cases — a win rate of 0.6 percent, far below the 15.2 percent first-instance win rate in administrative lawsuits excluding refugee cases.
![A forged refugee application written by a broker, provided by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency [SEOUL METROPOLITAN POLICE AGENCY]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/04/27/fc72e08f-7455-43eb-bd35-f5f1dc3b15f2.jpg)
A forged refugee application written by a broker, provided by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency [SEOUL METROPOLITAN POLICE AGENCY]
Critics say that repeated asylum filings and lawsuits based on false claims are ultimately delaying reviews for people who actually need protection.
“Brokers are not the only problem. There is also an environment in which some lawyers and administrative agents encourage lawsuits related to false refugee applications, and more foreign nationals are taking advantage of it,” Ahn Dae-hwan, who leads the Korea Migration Foundation, said in a phone interview. “The reality is that refugees who were persecuted in their home countries are left waiting indefinitely.”
A Chinese national surnamed Zhang, for example, came to Korea and applied for refugee status after facing religious persecution, but is still waiting for a decision three years later.
There is also criticism that the backlog of such litigation is contributing to broader delays in court proceedings. Refugee cases accounted for 36 percent of all administrative lawsuits filed with the Supreme Court last year, the Ministry of Justice said. The share had been just 1.6 percent in 2014, the year after the Refugee Act took effect.
The delay could extend further if newly available constitutional complaints against court rulings are widely used, according to a lawyer.
“If litigants begin using a four-tier court structure as well, the process could be delayed by another six months to a year,” the lawyer said.
Bills proposed by lawmakers from both the Democratic Party and the People Power Party would allow for the early dismissal of repeat refugee applications filed without serious cause, but the measures have been pending for months before the National Assembly’s Legislation and Judiciary Committee. The Ministry of Justice said that it plans to actively cooperate so the amendment bills can pass the National Assembly in the future.
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 KIM JEONG-JAE [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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