Thai workers who are staying illegally in South Korea have been urged to report to immigration authorities to take advantage of a voluntary return programme, which would exempt them from fines and other penalties.
In a Facebook post announcing the roll-out of the programme, the Thai embassy in Seoul said workers who wish to take advantage of the amnesty can report to the Korean Immigration Office until Jan 31 next year.
Those who report by the deadline will be exempted from paying fines for overstaying, according to a Facebook post by the Thai embassy in Seoul.
According to a report by the Korea Times in June, Thai workers accounted for more than 35% of all undocumented foreign nationals in South Korea.
Citing figures released by South Korea's Ministry of Justice in late May, the report said there were 145,810 Thais living illegally in the country -- far higher than illegal workers from Vietnam (79,366), China (64,151), the Philippines (13,740), Indonesia (12,172) and Cambodia (10,681).