Will a school violence measure affect my child's visa in Korea?

A measure ordered by the school violence committee, from a written apology to a transfer, is an educational measure issued by the district superintendent. It is not a criminal conviction, and it does not appear in the Immigration Act's list of grounds for deportation. A protection disposition from the juvenile court (소년보호처분) is also not a criminal sentence, and the Juvenile Act says it must not affect the young person's future. What does appear in the deportation list is a criminal sentence of imprisonment (금고 이상의 형). So for most families the honest answer is: the school case itself does not touch the visa, but a case that moves into the police and criminal track can, and immigration keeps wide discretion at every extension.

Three tracks that look alike

	School violence measure (학폭위 조치)	Juvenile protection disposition (소년보호처분)	Criminal punishment (형사처벌)
Who decides	District superintendent, on the committee's request	Juvenile division of the family court	Criminal court
What it is	Education and protection measure, numbers 1 to 9	Supervision, community service, education orders, or placement in a juvenile facility, numbers 1 to 10	A fine or imprisonment
Is it a "criminal record"?	No	No; the law bars it from affecting the child's future	Yes
In the deportation list?	No	No	Imprisonment: yes

The same incident can run on more than one track at once. The school procedure does not wait for the police, and a police report by the other family does not stop the committee.

Does the school report my family to immigration?

Public officials who find a foreigner violating immigration rules have a duty to report it. There is a specific exception for staff at elementary, middle and high schools who learn a foreign student's personal details through the student's school life. So the teacher, the task force and the committee handling a bullying case are not required to report your family's status, whatever it is. That protection is about the school; if the police become involved, the school's exception does not cover them.

Can my child be deported for a school measure?

Not for the measure itself. The grounds for deportation are listed in the Immigration Act and include things like entering illegally, working without permission, not registering, and being released after a sentence of imprisonment. A committee measure, even a transfer or an expulsion, is not on that list.

Two limits should be said plainly:

• The list also includes people who are found, after entry, to fall under an entry ban, and the entry ban covers anyone "likely to act against public safety or social order". Immigration decides what that means. In an ordinary school fight this is not applied to children, but it is a discretionary power, not a fixed rule.
• A juvenile court can send a child to a juvenile reformatory (소년원). Reformatories are required to notify immigration when a foreign inmate is released. That notification is the one point where the juvenile track and the immigration track meet.

What happens at the next visa extension?

Extensions are decided by immigration under criteria set by ministry rules, and the officer can look at the child's record. The useful facts:

• A school measure is not a police or court record. It is kept in the school record (학교생활기록부) under Ministry of Education rules, and how long it stays depends on the measure number and on rules that have changed several times. Ask what applies to your child's measure and year.
• Juvenile protection cases are closed to inquiries except for trial, investigation or military purposes. Agencies involved may not answer other requests about the case.
• If the extension form asks about court or police involvement, answer truthfully. A wrong answer on a form is a separate problem that can lead to cancellation of permission.

My child is on a student visa. Does a transfer or expulsion matter?

Yes, for this visa type it can. A student visa (D-4) exists because the child is enrolled. A transfer to another school (measure 8) changes the school on which the visa is based, and an expulsion (measure 9, possible only in high school) removes it. Before the measure takes effect, ask the immigration office whether the change must be reported and what documents the new school must issue. Children on a dependent visa (F-3 or F-1) or on a residence visa with their family (F-2, F-6 family) do not have this problem, because their status does not rest on enrollment.

Does it affect the parents' visa?

We know of no rule that transfers a child's school measure or juvenile disposition to the parent's status. What can affect a parent is a separate matter: an unpaid damages claim from the other family, or a parent's own actions during the dispute, such as threats or an assault in front of the school.

If the police are involved

• A child under 14 cannot be punished criminally; from age 10 the case goes to the juvenile court as a protection case.
• From age 14 the prosecutor decides whether to send the case to the juvenile court or to a criminal court. Most first-time school cases go to the juvenile court.
• The child or the parent may appoint an assistant (보조인), usually a lawyer, with the judge's permission.
• Interpretation in a police interview or in court is a different question from the school committee; ask for it at the first contact.

Next step

Find out which track your child's case is on today: school only, school plus police, or juvenile court. If a police summons or a prosecutor's letter has arrived, bring it to a consultation together with the committee decision, and tell us your child's visa type. Consultations are paid; when you contact us, a staff member will call you back and explain the fee.

법무법인 대한중앙
1533-7377

Rules applied

Immigration Act (출입국관리법) Article 46(1) (grounds for deportation, including no. 3 entry-ban grounds found after entry and no. 13 release after a sentence of imprisonment), Article 11(1) (entry bans, including no. 3 and 4 public safety and social order), Article 25 (extension of stay, criteria set by ministry rule), Article 84(1) (duty of public officials to report) and 84(2) no. 3 (notification on release from a juvenile reformatory), Article 89(1) (cancellation of permission). Immigration Act Enforcement Decree Article 92-2 no. 1 (school staff exempt from the reporting duty). Juvenile Act (소년법) Article 2 (under 19), Article 4(1) (protection cases, ages 10 to under 14), Article 17 (assistant), Article 32(1) and (6) (ten dispositions; no effect on the future), Article 49(1) (prosecutor's referral), Article 70(1) (no answer to inquiries except trial, investigation or military). School Violence Act (학교폭력예방 및 대책에 관한 법률) Article 17(1) (nine measures; expulsion not in compulsory education).

This is general information, not legal advice. Every case is different.