By Park Si-soo



The government has pushed for a plan to introduce a “scoring system” for foreigners with special skills and allot benefits accordingly.



Once the new scheme is approved, foreigners will be evaluated on the basis of age, academic background and professional licenses when they enter the country and get a job here. They will be given opportunities, accordingly.



In its report on immigration policies based on an analysis of advanced economies such as the United States, Germany, Japan, and France, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said Sunday, “We should take the upper hand in the global competition to attract as many elite foreigners as possible by providing proven candidates with a variety of advantages,” the ministry said.



“An effective way (to reach the goal) may be scoring them based on their capabilities and to treat them differently in immigration, employment and other administrative affairs.”



Among the indicators for assessment are age, academic background, and certified licenses among others, it said.



The ministry said those with ample knowledge and experience about an industry that is suffering from a workforce shortage should be given better treatment. The scoring system has been employed by the United Kingdom, Canada, the Netherlands, the U.S., Australia and Japan, it added.



“We need to streamline the immigration checkup process for them and, if necessary, establish checkpoints open exclusively to them,” the ministry said. “Their family members should be given favors in employment and other affairs as well.”



The ministry said the government should increase the number of foreign students benefiting from state-funded scholarship programs, portraying it as a cost-effective way to make elite foreigners settle down in Korea.



Kim Jae-hwan, a finance ministry official familiar with the issue, said the report suggests the direction in which the country’s immigration policies should move and they would take shape after discussions with the Ministry of Justice which is in charge of immigration policy.



The Korean government has stepped up efforts to have as large an elite foreign workforce as possible in domestic industries.



In January, the justice ministry unveiled a broad picture of immigration policies for this year that was centered on revamping the immigration system to attract elite foreigners into Korea and letting them stay here permanently.



The ministry also called for tough measures against racial discrimination.



Citing laws in the U.S., Australia, Germany and France, it warned that racial discrimination is deeply rooted among Koreans who have long believed they are racially homogenous and it will serve as a stumbling block biting into the country’s international competitiveness.

기획재정부는 22일 외국인 전문 우수인력을 유치하려면 입국할 때 혜택을 줘야 한다고 지적했다. 기재부는 `주요국의 외국인력정책 트렌드 분석과 시사점' 보고서에서 "외국인력의 나이ㆍ학력ㆍ자격증 등에 점수를 매겨 체류자격을 주고 등급이 높을수록 혜택을 많이 주는 포인트제도를 도입, 맞춤형 인재를 유입해야 한다"고 밝혔다. 우수인력에겐 가족의 국내취업이나 본인의 출입국 통관을 간소화해주고, 국가장학생 프로그램을 확대해 외국인 유학생을 미래자원으로 활용하는 방안을 내놨다. 국가간 치열해지는 전문인력 유치경쟁에서 우위를 점하기 위해서다. 보고서는 외국인 미숙련 인력은 내국인 고용보호 범위에서 적정수준으로 관리해야 한다고 강조했다. 내국인에게 먼저 고용기회를 보장한 다음 외국인 고용을 허가하는 `노동시장 테스트 제도'를 방안으로 제시했다. 고용주가 외국인 노동자를 고용할 때 미국은 고용부담금, 독일은 고용허가 수수료, 프랑스는 외국인 고용세를 거둬 외국인력 수요를 억제하고 있다는 점도 소개했다. 정부는 2011년 경제정책방향에서 외국인력 고용부담금을 단계적으로 도입하는 방안을 검토했다. 보고서는 "사회갈등을 줄이고 내외국인간 시너지를 창출하는 사회통합정책을 강화해야 한다"고 강조했다. 미국, 호주, 독일, 프랑스는 차별금지법을 제정해 인종과 출신지역에 따른 차별을 금지하고 있다. 일본, 아랍에미리트(UAE), 카타르는 고용계약을 맺은 외국인력에겐 자국 노동법을 똑같이 적용한다. 보고서는 이주민의 모국어로 제작되는 `다문화방송(Ethnic Media)'을 활성화하고 언어와 역사교육, 직업교육을 제공해야 한다고 덧붙였다. (연합)