Highly educated or professional foreign workers will be allowed to stay longer in South Korea and their spouses will be allowed to work if they meet certain criteria like educational backgrounds and language skills.
 
The government announced plans to attract competent foreign workers to South Korea in an economy-related ministers' meeting on Wednesday
 
Under the plans, South Korea will accept more foreign science and technology students from countries other than China. Currently, the majority of foreign students in South Korea come from China to study humanities. Foreign students will also be allowed to get a job in South Korea.
 
The government will ease rules on issuing working visas to foreigners and improve living conditions for them, such as better accessibility to administrative and medical services.
  
The number of foreigners residing in South Korea surged from one-point-four million in 2011 to over two million last year, however, only 48-thousand of them are professional workers.