Drawing the Line

SEOUL —  It was 9 a.m. and Hong So Yong had already killed more than an hour outside the U.S. Embassy. Her only comfort was that she was with nine of her closest friends. They were all steamed.

They were scheduled to take a long-awaited vacation in Hawaii in less than two weeks. But first they had to get tourist visas, which meant waiting in line here in the summer heat to get grilled about their economic and personal well-being.

Had they been Japanese or Andorrans or Liechtensteiners, they wouldn’t need visas for a short visit to the land of Don Ho. But South Korea--fast becoming a preeminent industrial power, one whose globe-trotting citizens have money to burn and international business deals to strike--is still treated as a Third World country by the United States. Thus, South Korean citizens must obtain visas to enter the U.S.

“It hurts our pride,” said Hong, 49, a petite, well-dressed woman. “We are asked such tedious questions. ‘How much wealth we have? How much we have saved?’ Who would want to be questioned like that? We just want to go visit your country.”

The long line of frustrated South Koreans waiting outside the Embassy every morning illustrates the difficult balancing act facing the U.S. government as it tries to further open its borders to trade and tourism while tightening controls on illegal immigrants and terrorists.

Here in South Korea, growing prosperity and a relaxation of government controls have led to an explosion in foreign travel, particularly to the United States. In July, the embassy processed more than 83,000 visa applications, an 82% increase over the previous year.

Last year, 733,000 South Koreans visited the United States and spent more than $1 billion on meals, trinkets and hotel rooms.

At the same time, budget cutbacks at the U.S. State Department and heightened concerns over illegal immigration and terrorism have created a bureaucratic nightmare at several overseas posts.

The 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center in New York was linked to individuals who had entered the country under questionable visa status. The July 25 crash of TWA Flight 800 off the East Coast and the bombing at the Atlanta Olympics have increased pressure from the public to make it harder, not easier, for foreign citizens to get into the country.

Although visa backlogs are common in many countries--notably Russia and Brazil--the South Korean one has taken on particular urgency because of its growing importance as the U.S.’ sixth-largest trading partner and a key military ally.

South Koreans emboldened by their newfound prosperity resent being treated as potential immigration risks. Besides, Americans can enter South Korea without a visa for as long as 15 days.

The mounting frustration has led to quashed business deals and lost tourism revenue as South Koreans opt for more hospitable destinations, according to U.S. and South Korean business leaders and politicians.

“It’s not just the business loss. . . . If this problem continues, I worry about some anti-American Korean sentiment surfacing in uneducated segments of Korean society,” said Jay K. Yoo, a newly elected member of South Korea’s National Assembly and vice president of the opposition National Congress for New Politics.

The visa issue was raised by Yoo and six other South Korean congressmen during a visit to Washington last month.

It is particularly worrisome for officials in California, which has the nation’s largest Korean American community and is the leading destination for Korean travelers to this country. In 1994, California was visited by 256,000 South Koreans, representing more than half the number of South Koreans who visited the United States that year.

“Without question, this concern about Koreans getting visas to America is affecting both commerce and tourism,” said John Poimiroo, director of the California Trade and Commerce Agency’s Division of Tourism.

Although travel by South Koreans to the United States continues to expand dramatically, the U.S. share of the total South Korean travel market dropped 6.4% last year. This trend comes as the U.S. tourism industry is struggling to boost business from overseas--its share of the international travel market has shrunk from 19% to 15% over the past three years.

Other countries are wooing those increasingly affluent South Korean travelers; these travelers last year spent an estimated $2,070 apiece during their stays in this country, excluding air fare. Canada and New Zealand have abolished visa requirements for short-term visitors from South Korea, and Australia has instituted a 24-hour visa processing system.

“We do not want to see that the security of the U.S. is being undermined in any way,” said Patti North-Rudin, assistant executive director of the U.S. Travel and Tourism Government Affairs Council, a travel industry lobbying group. “But we need to find the right balance, and we’re not sure that balance has been found.”

The visa backlog has led to embarrassments for the U.S. Embassy, where overworked officers have rejected applications by such prominent South Koreans as the sister of President Kim Young Sam and the daughter of Chung Ju Yung, the honorary chairman of the Hyundai conglomerate--hardly threats to the United States. Those decisions were later reversed.

Business is suffering. One U.S. insurance firm in Seoul was unable to get visas for a group of salespeople to visit the United States. A major South Korean company had to put important business on hold while it waited months to get a visa for a manager it was transferring to its U.S. subsidiary.

“Given the strength of his company, he should have been issued a visa routinely in a very short time span,” said Andrew Lee, the Los Angeles attorney who handled the case.

George Williams Jr., president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Seoul, said the State Department is still operating by “old perceptions” of South Korea as a Third World nation rather than one with the world’s 11th-largest economy.

The chamber is trying to get South Korea added to a U.S. program that allows foreigners to travel to this country for up to 90 days without visas. To qualify, countries must show that their citizens have money to spend and are not a high risk for illegal immigration. That means having a visa application refusal rate and an “overstay” rate of less than 2% for two consecutive years.

There is a precedent for bending this rule. In 1994, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) succeeded in getting Ireland into the visa-waiver program by establishing a probationary category for countries that had trimmed their visa rejection rate to 3.5% and were showing signs of improvement.

Although South Korea’s rejection rate has dropped dramatically in recent years, it has not met the 2% requirement.

But U.S. Rep. Jay Kim (R-Diamond Bar) has drawn up a bill that would grant South Korea provisional admittance to the visa-waiver program, subject to review after one year.

Rep. Kim argues that South Korea should be admitted because of its economic importance, that its trade and tourism numbers far exceed many of the 25 countries already on the list.

“A lot of Koreans feel insulted that they have to go through this long waiting process while [citizens from] other countries are enjoying free entry,” he said.

But State Department officials oppose creating any more special categories, fearing it would open the door to accusations of favoritism.

In spite of the improvement in its economy, citizens of South Korea are still considered a risk for illegal immigration to the United States because of the lure of better jobs or schools for their children, according to U.S. Consul General Kathryn Dee Robinson in Seoul.

Once allowed into the United States, they could easily disappear into the huge Korean communities in cities such as Los Angeles.

“Not every Korean has shared in the prosperity,” she pointed out.

At the U.S. Embassy here, steps have been taken to streamline the visa processing system, but the visa office in Seoul is still badly understaffed and often works nights and weekends. During peak travel times this summer, it took up to seven days to process a visa application.

“We are doing what we can,” Robinson said.

Chi Jung Nam of The Times Seoul bureau contributed to this report.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Visa Anyone?

South Korea is one of few major industrialized nation whose citizens need visas to enter the United States. Leading countries in terms of projected 1996 visitors to the U.S., and visa requirements, if any: *--*

Country Visitors (millions) Visa required? Canada 13.40 No Mexico 9.40 Yes Japan 5.30 No Britain 3.20 No Germany 2.00 No France 0.98 No Brazil 0.94 Yes South Korea 0.87 Yes Taiwan 0.64 Yes Italy 0.57 No

*--*

Coming for a Visit

The number of visitors to the U.S. from South Korea has nearly tripled in five years, and so has the amount spent here. Recent and projected visits and spending by South Koreans:

*--*

Year Visitors* Growth Spending (millions)** Growth 1991 278,182 32% $553 38% 1992 341,311 23 679 23 1993 408,213 20 684 1 1994 507,000 24 867 27 1995 613,000 21 1,072 24 1996 733,000 20 1,319 23

*--*

* Excludes visitors to U.S. territory of Guam ** Receipts are estimates and exclude air fare Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Travel and Tourism Administration