US issuance of nonimmigrant visas for Koreans falls by 8%

US issuance of nonimmigrant visas for Koreans fell nearly 8 percent in 2025 after the new Trump administration took office. Rep. Hong Kee-won’s office said 68,130 visas were issued, down from 74,015 in 2024. The decline covered most categories, though B-1 and B-2 issuances later rose in early 2026 after a September detention of Korean workers in Georgia.

Rep. Hong Kee-won’s office said U.S. State Department data showed 68,130 nonimmigrant visas were issued to Koreans in 2025.

The 2025 total was down 7.95 percent from 74,015 issued in 2024.

Average monthly B-1 and B-2 visa issuances fell from 1,273 in 2024 to 1,212 in 2025 before rising to 2,027 in January and February 2026.

F-1 international student visa issuances for Koreans fell from a monthly average of 1,195 in 2024 to 965 in 2025 and 273 in January and February 2026.

Korea and the U.S. launched a visa support desk at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul in December to help Korean companies investing in the U.S. with smoother entry procedures.

Published Sep 27, 2026 7:44 am KST

Updated Sep 27, 2026 7:57 am KST

This illustration picture shows a US visa in a passport in Mexico City, Aug. 25. AFP-Yonhap

The United States' issuance of nonimmigrant visas for Koreans fell nearly 8 percent from a year earlier in 2025 following the inauguration of the new U.S. President Donald Trump administration, data analyzed by a lawmaker's office showed Sunday.

The office of Rep. Hong Kee-won of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea said it recently analyzed U.S. State Department data on visa issuance per country and found that 68,130 nonimmigrant visas had been issued to Koreans last year, down 7.95 percent from 74,015 issued in 2024 during former President Joe Biden's administration.

The number fell across most categories, including the B-1 business visa and the B-2 tourism visa.

During the months following last September's surprise detention of hundreds of Korean workers in the U.S. state of Georgia, however, the numbers appeared to grow, according to the lawmaker's office.

In December, Korea and the U.S. launched a visa support desk at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul to help Korean companies investing in the U.S. with smoother entry procedures.

The State Department data showed average monthly B-1 and B-2 visa issuances fell from 1,273 in 2024 to 1,212 in 2025 before increasing to 2,027 in January and February this year, Hong's office said.

Still, F-1 international student visa issuances for Koreans dropped significantly from a monthly average of 1,195 in 2024 to 965 in 2025, and 273 in January and February 2026.

"Though this phenomenon is global due to the Trump administration's anti-immigration policies and the reduction is smaller for us than it is for other major countries, if the situation is left unattended, it will cause considerable harm to many students preparing to study in the U.S.," Hong said.

"There need to be efforts to normalize these visa issuances by operating all available diplomatic channels with the U.S."

美国在特朗普新政府上台后，2025年向韩国公民发放的非移民签证数量下降了近8%。众议员洪基元办公室表示，当年发放的签证数量为68130份，低于2024年的74015份。签证发放数量下降涵盖了大多数类别，但B-1和B-2签证的发放数量在2026年初有所回升，此前9月份佐治亚州发生了一起韩国劳工被拘留事件。

洪基元议员办公室表示，美国国务院数据显示，2025年将向韩国人发放68130份非移民签证。

2025 年的总发行量比 2024 年的 74,015 份下降了 7.95%。

2024 年平均每月签发的 B-1 和 B-2 签证数量为 1,273 个，2025 年降至 1,212 个，然后在 2026 年 1 月和 2 月回升至 2,027 个。

韩国学生获得的 F-1 国际学生签证发放数量从 2024 年的月均 1195 份下降到 2025 年的 965 份，并在 2026 年 1 月和 2 月下降到 273 份。

韩国和美国于去年12月在美国驻首尔大使馆设立了签证支持服务台，以帮助在美投资的韩国公司更顺利地办理入境手续。

发布于2026年9月27日 上午7:44（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年9月27日 上午7:57（韩国标准时间）

这张插图照片显示的是8月25日在墨西哥城拍摄的一本护照上的美国签证。（法新社/韩联社）

一位议员办公室周日分析的数据显示，自美国新任总统唐纳德·特朗普政府就职以来，2025年美国向韩国人发放的非移民签证数量比上年同期下降了近8%。

韩国执政党共同民主党议员洪基元的办公室表示，他们最近分析了美国国务院关于各国签证发放的数据，发现去年向韩国人发放了68130份非移民签证，比前总统乔·拜登执政期间2024年发放的74015份减少了7.95%。

大部分类别的申请人数都有所下降，包括 B-1 商务签证和 B-2 旅游签证。

然而，据该议员办公室称，在去年 9 月美国佐治亚州突然拘留数百名韩国工人之后的几个月里，人数似乎有所增加。

去年12月，韩国和美国在美国驻首尔大使馆设立了签证支持服务台，以帮助在美投资的韩国公司更顺利地办理入境手续。

洪的办公室表示，国务院的数据显示，B-1 和 B-2 签证的月均签发量从 2024 年的 1273 个下降到 2025 年的 1212 个，然后在今年 1 月和 2 月增加到 2027 个。

尽管如此，韩国学生获得的 F-1 国际学生签证数量还是大幅下降，从 2024 年的月均 1195 份降至 2025 年的 965 份，2026 年 1 月和 2 月更是降至 273 份。

“虽然由于特朗普政府的反移民政策，这种现象是全球性的，而且我们受到的影响比其他主要国家要小，但如果这种情况得不到解决，将会对许多准备赴美留学的学生造成相当大的伤害，”洪说。

“需要通过一切可用的外交渠道与美国进行沟通，努力使这些签证的发放正常化。”