The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) presented an opinion to the Ministry of Justice to abolish the legal provision requiring marriage migrants to submit a letter of guarantee of reference by their Korean spouse for the purpose of visa extension. The NHRCK concluded after reviews that such requirement is incompatible with Articles 10 and 36(1) of the Constitution of the Republicof Koreathat “marriage and family life shall be entered into and sustained on the basis of individual dignity and equality of the sexes.”
Under the current Enforcement Ordinance of Immigration Control Law, a marriage migrant is required to submit a certificate of kinship, a certificate of residence and a letter of guarantee of reference to prove the continuity of marriage. The letter of guarantee of reference is also deemed to serve a document proving the genuineness of international marriages. In this process, the responsibility to prove the visa status of marriage migrants is bestowed on their Korean spouse.
However, the NHRCK found that such requirement often puts marriage migrants into the inferior status to their spouse as migrants themselves had to rely on the guarantee of their spouses for visa extension. The Commission also considered that the requirement could contribute to inequality in their marriage relationship.
It was reviewed that the abolishment of such legal provision may not necessarily hinder the administrative purpose for migration control, but may contribute to protecting marriage migrants from domestic violence. Thus, the NHRCK recommended that the abolishment of such legal provision requirement needs to be considered.
