Supreme Court upholds ruling in favor of Yoo Seung-jun's visa issuance

South Korean singer Yoo Seung-jun (47, photo), who had been denied entry into the country for almost two years, has received a final ruling from the Supreme Court allowing a visa issued for him. Yoo, who emerged victorious in two recent visa issuance lawsuits, will now be allowed to enter Korea after 21 years.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court's Third Division upheld the appellate court's decision in Yoo's lawsuit to overturn the refusal of passport and visa issuance by the Los Angeles Consulate General, where he filed for a visa.

Yoo, who acquired U.S. citizenship in 2002 to dodge military service, applied for an Overseas Korean Visa to enter Korea through the Los Angeles Consulate General in 2015 when he was 39. When the consulate refused to issue the visa, citing concerns about potential harm to national interests, Yoo filed an administrative lawsuit and won the case in March 2020.

Upon another denial of Yoo's visa by the Los Angeles Consulate General, he filed another administrative lawsuit. The first-instance court ruled against Yoo, stating that granting the visa could undermine public trust in the fair burden of military service and does not align with the nation's sense of justice. However, in July of this year, the appellate court's panel declared that, barring special circumstances threatening the interests of South Korea, Yoo should be granted residency.

The Supreme Court upheld the original finding and dismissed the case without review as there were no legal violations in the original judgment.


ycy@donga.com