Foreign delivery riders who worked without proper qualifications by using delivery app accounts registered under Korean nationals' names have been caught en masse in a large-scale crackdown. The number of those caught this year alone exceeded 700, reaching 11 times last year's annual figure, raising concerns that the illegal delivery market may be more widespread than expected.
The Ministry of Justice said Friday that a concentrated crackdown on foreign illegal delivery riders from January to May this year resulted in the detection of 734 foreigners and 16 delivery businesses on suspicion of violating the Immigration Control Act. Considering that 67 foreigners were caught throughout last year, the crackdown results increased about 11-fold.
By nationality, Vietnamese nationals were the most numerous at 444, accounting for 61% of the total, followed by Chinese at 164 and Uzbeks at 86. By region, Seoul had the most at 282, followed by Suwon with 172, Daejeon with 43, Incheon with 40, Cheongju with 29, Siheung with 27 and Busan with 17.
By residency status, holders of student (D-2) visas numbered 410, accounting for 56% of the total, more than half. They were followed by overseas Koreans (F-4) at 149 and job-seeker (D-10) visa holders at 99. The students caught were found to be enrolled at 96 universities nationwide.
Deportation and Fines... Push for 'Facial Verification' in Delivery Apps
The Ministry of Justice issued departure orders including deportation for 68 of the foreigners caught, considering the degree of violation and residency conditions, and imposed fines totaling 1.6287 billion won on 643 people. Additional investigations are underway for the remaining individuals.
Among them, two were referred for criminal charges, and one was found to be on a wanted list and handed over to police. In addition, 15 who were confirmed to have driven without a license will undergo police investigation after supplementary examination.
Delivery business owners who provided accounts for illegal activities were also subject to investigation. The Ministry of Justice said it had caught 16 business owners who provided other people's delivery app accounts to foreigners and was conducting investigations.
Institutional improvements to prevent recurrence are also being pursued. In May, the Ministry of Justice held a meeting with major delivery platform companies and recommended the introduction of a facial verification system that can confirm the identity of delivery app users, as well as strengthened management and supervision of businesses.
"We will strengthen investigations not only of foreigners engaged in illegal delivery but also of brokers who provide or arrange the use of names," Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho said. "In cooperation with relevant agencies and platform companies, we will block the very structure through which illegal delivery takes place and work to protect the domestic employment market."
