South Korea has signaled that major U.S. industrial projects will remain in limbo until visa issues for Korean workers are resolved, following a dramatic immigration raid at a Hyundai-LG battery plant in Georgia. The standoff comes amid stalled trade and investment negotiations, as Seoul pressures Washington to introduce visa reforms favorable to Korean firms.

Visa Disputes Freeze Korean U.S. Investment Plans

Seoul has tied the execution of its ambitious $350 billion investment push to resolution of visa challenges facing Korean workers in the U.S. The South Korean Foreign Minister stated that until visa pathways are clarified and made reliable, many projects will be paused. The urgency increased after hundreds of Korean laborers were detained in Georgia under claims of visa violations, raising red flags across Korean industry.

Korea’s leadership has argued that the current visa framework lacks a mechanism for skilled Korean workers to temporarily operate in U.S. facilities—a problem that hinders the deployment of technical and operational personnel needed in the early phases of factory buildouts. The absence of such a visa is seen as a barrier to fulfilling commitments under ongoing trade and industrial deals.

Impact of Georgia Raid on Bilateral Relations

The ICE raid earlier this month at the Korean-linked EV battery plant shook the diplomatic relationship between the two allies. Over 300 Korean workers, many serving in technical roles, were temporarily detained, provoking widespread political backlash in Seoul. These incidents have elevated the visa issue from bureaucratic friction to national priority.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung warned that without reform, Korean firms may hesitate to continue or expand direct investments in the U.S. He emphasized that Korean companies have long relied on short-term visitor visas or waiver programs to deploy workers during project setup—a practice now under severe scrutiny. The raid exposed the fragility of those workarounds and intensified calls for structural change.

Strategic & Economic Ramifications

If U.S. visa policy proves resistant to overhaul, Korean companies may reconsider the feasibility of further investment in American manufacturing. Delays in deployment, repatriation costs, or labor disruptions could raise the cost of capital and lower expected returns.

On the flip side, Washington faces pressure to reconcile its industrial goals—encouraging foreign investment in key sectors like clean energy and EV manufacturing—with restrictive visa rules. Failure to do so risks undermining the credibility of U.S. commitments to allies and deter further capital flows.

From a global investor vantage point, the dispute reinforces that trade and investment are increasingly intertwined with immigration and labor policy. Korea’s insistence on visa reform may inspire similar demands from other nations with strategic industrial footprints in the U.S.

Looking ahead, the main question is whether Congress or the administration will move quickly to authorize a new visa classification or waiver for Korean specialists. Observers will track whether both sides form working groups, draft pilot visa schemes, or tie investment incentives to policy progress. The resolution—or continued stalemate—will be a key signal for investors evaluating Korean capital’s trajectory in the U.S.