Yeongdeungpo-gu (district mayor Cho Yu-jin) published a comprehensive lifestyle guide called "Welcome Letter" in June to help newly arrived foreign residents and multicultural families settle into the community.
Foreign residents account for 50,296 of the district's total population of 400,799 — or 12.5 percent. The district revises and distributes the Welcome Letter annually so that its growing foreign resident population can quickly access district information and lifestyle services and establish stable roots in the community.
The Welcome Letter opens with a general introduction to Yeongdeungpo-gu and brings together practical information covering four areas: entry and residency (address changes, permanent residency eligibility and more), welfare and lifestyle services (medical support, school enrollment guidance, employment support and more), basic civic rules (waste sorting and recycling, parking violation enforcement, no-smoking zone information and more), and resident support facilities (support agencies for foreign nationals and multicultural families, libraries, parks, sports facilities and more). The booklet is printed in Korean, English and Chinese, making it accessible to residents not yet comfortable with Korean.
This year's edition adds information on new facilities to better serve residents. The newly opened Singil Chaengmaru Cultural Center and Yeouido Brighton Library have been included in the resident support facilities section, and the Daelim 3-dong Seoul-type kids cafe — set to open in October — is also introduced in detail.
Copies are available at the district office, neighborhood community centers, the Dadeurim Cultural Complex Center, the Yeongdeungpo-gu Family Center, the Seoul Foreign Residents Center and the Yeongdeungpo Immigration Civil Affairs Center. The booklet can also be viewed at any time on the Yeongdeungpo-gu district office website.
"This year's Welcome Letter has been enriched with not only information on new facilities but also Korean lifestyle etiquette and useful expressions," district mayor Cho said. "We will continue building a Yeongdeungpo where residents of all cultural backgrounds can live and thrive together."
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