If you are job-hunting in Korea, it helps to know how many foreign workers there are, where they are, where they come from, and which industries hire them. Here is the picture from the latest KOSIS (national statistics) data.
About half a million foreign workers — concentrated in Gyeonggi
As of 2024, local-government records counted about 503,000 foreign workers across Korea. They are heavily concentrated in the capital region: Gyeonggi Province alone holds 35% (about 177,000), far ahead of anywhere else. South Gyeongsang, South Chungcheong, and Seoul follow. Busan, for example, has about 16,000. The pattern tracks Korea’s manufacturing and farming belts rather than the big-city office economy.
| Region | Workers | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Gyeonggi | 177,122 | 35.2% |
| South Gyeongsang | 54,925 | 10.9% |
| South Chungcheong | 40,237 | 8.0% |
| Seoul | 37,734 | 7.5% |
| North Gyeongsang | 29,693 | 5.9% |
| South Jeolla | 29,115 | 5.8% |
| North Chungcheong | 24,432 | 4.9% |
| Incheon | 23,039 | 4.6% |
| Busan | 16,445 | 3.3% |
| North Jeolla | 14,956 | 3.0% |
| Ulsan | 13,100 | 2.6% |
| Jeju | 12,361 | 2.5% |
| Daegu | 9,897 | 2.0% |
| Gangwon | 7,989 | 1.6% |
| Gwangju | 6,400 | 1.3% |
| Daejeon | 2,895 | 0.6% |
| Sejong | 2,294 | 0.5% |
| Total | 502,634 | 100% |
Where they come from
The largest groups are Korean-Chinese and Vietnamese, followed by workers from Nepal, Cambodia, and Indonesia. Together, Southeast and South Asian countries make up the bulk of the foreign workforce.
| Nationality | Workers | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Korean-Chinese (China) | 68,273 | 13.6% |
| Vietnam | 61,762 | 12.3% |
| Nepal | 51,979 | 10.3% |
| Cambodia | 50,716 | 10.1% |
| Indonesia | 50,299 | 10.0% |
| Myanmar | 35,487 | 7.1% |
| Thailand | 29,239 | 5.8% |
| Philippines | 28,773 | 5.7% |
| Sri Lanka | 28,113 | 5.6% |
| Uzbekistan | 22,122 | 4.4% |
| Bangladesh | 16,874 | 3.4% |
| China (other) | 12,167 | 2.4% |
| Pakistan | 5,704 | 1.1% |
| Mongolia | 4,775 | 0.9% |
| Other countries | 36,351 | 7.2% |
| Total | 502,634 | 100% |
What they do: the E-9 workforce by industry
Industry data is clearest for the E-9 (Employment Permit System) visa, Korea’s main route for non-professional labor, which covered about 285,000 workers in early 2026. Of these, 80% work in manufacturing, followed by agriculture and livestock, fishing, and construction. In other words, E-9 jobs are overwhelmingly in factories, farms, and fishing boats.
| Industry | Workers | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 228,178 | 80.0% |
| Agriculture & livestock | 33,702 | 11.8% |
| Fishing | 14,989 | 5.3% |
| Construction | 6,805 | 2.4% |
| Services | 1,375 | 0.5% |
| Mining / Forestry | 103 | 0.0% |
| Total | 285,152 | 100% |
What this means for newcomers
If you are working — or plan to work — in Korea, expect the opportunities to cluster in Gyeonggi and the Chungcheong and Gyeongsang industrial provinces, especially in manufacturing and agriculture, rather than in Seoul. Knowing where your industry and community are concentrated can help you decide where to settle and job-hunt.
Sources: KOSIS — “Foreign Workers by Local Government / Nationality” (2024); “E-9 (Employment Permit System) Foreign Workers by Region and Industry” (2026 Q1). Regional and industry figures come from two different surveys, so their totals differ.