South Korea Suspends Seasonal Worker Recruitment from Four Thai Provinces

This Week

South Korea has suspended recruitment of seasonal agricultural and fisheries workers from four northeastern Thai provinces for the entirety of 2026, after workers holding the visa abandoned their designated employers in agriculture and fisheries. 

The ban, effective 1 January to 31 December, covers Khon Kaen, Udon Thani, Chaiyaphum, and Maha Sarakham, all in Thailand’s Isaan region, one of the country’s primary sources of overseas labour.

South Korean authorities responded with two measures: individually blacklisting workers who absconded, and suspending all new E-8 recruitment from those provinces. The E-8 is a government-facilitated seasonal visa under bilateral agreements, covering up to five months in agriculture and fisheries.

Thailand’s Ministry of Labor confirmed on 12 May that the overall quota for Thai workers remains unchanged and that residents of the four provinces may still enter South Korea through other visa channels. Thai authorities acknowledged, however, that employer desertions continue despite ongoing legal training and monitoring.

Monthly wages in South Korea range from approximately USD 1,600 to USD 2,000, figures that make the informal labor market attractive to workers willing to risk their status. Any worker who leaves a designated employer is immediately classified as undocumented, regardless of how few make that choice.

The restriction carries a warning beyond Thailand. 

From 2021 to August 2025, more than 350,000 Lao nationals sought work overseas, primarily in Thailand, South Korea, and Japan, according to the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare. Over 17,000 are currently employed in South Korea alone, most in agriculture, manufacturing, and construction under the Employment Permit System and seasonal programmes. Lao workers remitted more than USD 29 million in the first half of 2025.

As South Korean authorities tighten compliance monitoring across the region, Lao workers and recruiters might face a comparable risk of program-level suspensions should similar case of workers leaving their employers without permission emerge.

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