MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th July, 2019) The South Korean border control officers at Seoul Incheon Airport denied entry to 16 Russian nationals at once over suspecting their visit to be not for tourism purposes but for illegal work, the representative of the Russian Embassy in South Korea told Sputnik on Monday.
Earlier in the day, the embassy said on Twitter that 16 Russian nationals were denied entry to South Korea after they failed to prove to border control officers that their visit was for tourism purposes.
"Every day, one to two people [from Russia] are denied entry to [South Korea]. But a group of 16 people at once - it's a rare thing, and every time it triggers a resonance on social media," the embassy said.
According to the embassy representative, the South Korean border control officers suspected the 16 Russian nationals of a visit for illegal work purposes because "they failed to name a single South Korean landmark site, their return plane tickets were reserved but not paid for, and they intended to live not in hotels but at friends' places or in hostels in the hinterland."
He has added that the embassy follows the situation and provides appropriate repatriation assistance to these people, who at the moment are held in the designated compartment for inadmissible passengers and are expected to return home by Tuesday.
In 2013, Russia and South Korea have established a visa-free regime for short-term visits with a maximum allowed stay of 60 days.
