Bush to announce S. Korea's entry into visa waiver program: officials

(ATTN: UPDATES with S. Korean official's comments in paras 4-5, background in last
para; CHANGES slug)
By Hwang Doo-hyong
WASHINGTON/SEOUL, Oct. 16 (Yonhap) -- U.S. President George W. Bush will announce
Friday South Korea's entry into the Visa Waiver Program (VWP), officials said
Thursday.
The program allows Korean citizens to stay in the United States for up to 90 days
without a visa, and vice versa for U.S. citizens traveling to South Korea.
South Korea will join the program along with seven other countries. The other six
are Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, all of
which belong to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The VWP currently
involves 27 member states, an official said.
"President Bush will invite the seven countries' ambassadors to the White House
and make the announcement at midnight Friday (Seoul time)," said Lee Jung-kwan,
director-general of the Foreign Ministry's consular affairs bureau.
Lee said South Koreans will be able to benefit from the VWP starting as early as
late November, after the two nations complete related internal procedures.
South Korea began issuing electronic passports in August as a precondition for
the much-awaited entry into the program, which is expected to reduce the
perpetual long lines in front of the U.S. embassy in Seoul.
The program will likely take effect in mid-November, when Seoul and Washington
are scheduled to sign an agreement on crime and terrorism prevention.
South Koreans who plan to study or cover news stories in the U.S. will not be
able to enter the country under the VWP, nor will those seeking employment or
permanent residency. Korean citizens falling under those categories are still
required to obtain relevant visas for entry, according to the officials.
South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan visited Washington last month to meet
with Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. During Yu's visit, the two
officials agreed to provide mutual access to the records of a limited number of
criminal suspects so that immigration authorities can access such information
automatically at airports. The agreement removed the last hurdle to South Korea's
entry into the VWP.
The minister said the automatic inquiry system is reciprocal and involves the
provision of information on certain types of crimes involving only a small number
of people.
Bush and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak agreed in April to implement the
VWP by the end of the year.
More than 360,000 South Koreans apply for U.S. visas every year for tourism and
commercial purposes, according to the Foreign Ministry. The visa application
requires a US$110 non-refundable processing fee.
(END)