Gangwon free zone authority, Korea Chinese General Chamber of Commerce sign MOU
Foreign investors who put 1 billion won into tourism facilities can obtain residency
The Gangwon Free Economic Zone Authority and the Korea Chinese General Chamber of Commerce signed an MOU on Thursday to promote a tourism and resort facility investment immigration program and attract foreign capital.
Under the program, foreign investors who put at least 1 billion won ($751,000) into designated tourism and resort facilities — such as resort condominiums — receive an F-2 long-term resident visa. Those who maintain the investment for five or more years qualify for an F-5 permanent residency visa. The Mangsang district in Donghae is one of the designated zones, and authorities expect it to become an attractive destination for foreign investors.
The agreement gives the Gangwon Free Economic Zone Authority a platform to introduce the Mangsang district development project and the investment immigration program to overseas Chinese business communities around the world, and to build ties with global ethnic Chinese networks.
The move has drawn attention to whether the Gangwon Free Economic Zone could follow Jeju's example and attract significant overseas Chinese capital.
The Korea Chinese General Chamber of Commerce is the country's leading ethnic Chinese business organization, founded in 1999 as the Korea Overseas Chinese Entrepreneurs Association.
The chamber counts more than 1,500 ethnic Chinese entrepreneurs among its members and serves as a bridge between Korea and the global overseas Chinese business community, maintaining broad ties with Chinese general chambers of commerce in Singapore, Hong Kong and the United States. In 2005, it hosted the 8th World Chinese Entrepreneurs Convention in Seoul.
The Gangwon Free Economic Zone Authority plans to tap the chamber's network to identify potential investors and pursue joint investment promotion activities, including investment consultations, site visits and investor briefings.
To mark the signing, the authority invited 15 chamber executives for a two-day, one-night program. An investor briefing was held Thursday afternoon at Sol Beach Samcheok, and on Friday the executives will tour the Mangsang district development site.
"With the revised development plan for Mangsang District 1 clearing the Free Economic Zone Committee on Oct. 19, the project has entered full swing," Commissioner Kim Yang-ho said. "We expect this agreement to serve as a solid springboard for introducing the Mangsang district to overseas investors."
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