Nepalese who paid money to have proxies take the Employment Permit System-Test of Proficiency in Korean (EPS-TOPIK) so they could get jobs in Korea, and then entered the country, have been caught in large numbers by immigration authorities.

The Incheon Airport Immigration Office of the Ministry of Justice announced on the 6th that it had identified 26 Nepalese, including a person referred to as A, on suspicion of violating the Immigration Control Act, and forcibly deported them.

A and the others are believed to have paid brokers in Nepal between 1 million and 15 million won from 2019 to 2025 to have Nepalese fluent in Korean take the Korean-Language Proficiency Test on their behalf, then passed, obtained non-professional employment visas (E-9) under the Employment Permit System, and entered Korea.

Only those who pass the Korean-Language Proficiency Test are eligible to apply for an E-9 visa.

Using its self-developed, cutting-edge ‘Foreigners Bio-Information Analysis System’, the Incheon Airport Immigration Office identified Nepalese whose photos submitted at the local test in Nepal did not match the facial data provided upon entry into Korea, and tracked 26 of them for a month starting in January.

The Incheon Airport Immigration Office believes that, as in Nepal, there are two to three other countries in Southeast and Central Asia where the Korean-Language Proficiency Test was taken by proxy, and it is conducting additional investigations.

An official at the Incheon Airport Immigration Office said, “Beyond the 26 Nepalese who were caught, we believe there are additional candidates who passed the Korean-Language Proficiency Test through cheating, and we are tracking them.”