◇ 2.16 million foreign nationals staying for more than three months
The same is true for the tourism sector, which aims to attract 30 million foreign visitors. Amid policies where the number of tourists has become the primary goal, the market and demand for “foreigners in Korea”—long-term residents who work, study, and live in the country—are being overlooked without anyone realizing it.
According to the Ministry of Justice, the number of foreigners residing in Korea exceeded 2.78 million by the end of 2025. This figure includes everyone from short-term visitors for tourism or business trips to long-term residents such as foreign workers, international students, expatriate employees, and marriage immigrants. Among them, approximately 2.16 million foreigners—more than 77% of the total—have been staying in Korea for over three months. This means that nearly eight out of every ten foreigners residing in Korea are not just passing through, but have made Korea their home.
While it may be questionable whether these individuals should be viewed as tourism demand flowing in from abroad, the picture changes when viewed through the lens of the “inclusive visitor economy,” which has recently become the paradigm for national and city tourism policies. The “visitor economy” is a broader concept of the tourism economy that encompasses not only short-term visitors for tourism or business but also long-term residents. While traditional tourism policies focused on specific schools of fish drawn to a coral reef, the visitor economy targets the entire coral reef ecosystem. It also aligns with the “night-time economy” in that it emphasizes the economic ripple effects on the nation and city—driven by visitors staying longer and spending more—rather than simply counting the number of tourists.
◇Effective Tourism Demand: Foreign Residents in Korea Must Not Be Overlooked
Even from the perspective of securing tourism demand alone, the value and role of the approximately 2.16 million long-term foreign residents are by no means matters to be taken lightly. This is especially true for regional cities that lack name recognition and face limited accessibility, such as a lack of direct flights. This is because attracting demand from within the country rather than from abroad is a far easier way to achieve results while investing less time and money. Since these individuals are more familiar with Korea than tourists, they naturally frequent every corner of the local commercial district—from neighborhood cafes and restaurants to supermarkets—and their demand is less susceptible to external factors such as exchange rates, oil prices, wars, and infectious diseases, which is another attractive aspect.
The shift in travel trends toward “experiences” is also a factor that increasingly elevates the value of long-term foreign residents. This is because the experiences and stories created every moment by those for whom traveling to Korea has become a way of life—rather than a one-time sightseeing trip—can serve as a driving force for new demand to visit Korea. Even if we assume that the approximately 2.16 million long-term foreign residents simply encourage their parents, siblings, friends, and colleagues back home to visit Korea, the impact is by no means insignificant.
Whether in business or policy, the driving force behind growth in performance and results ultimately comes from demand, not supply. As Keynes and Drucker argued, the belief that supply creates demand and the misconception that production is the ultimate goal have long since been disproved. The effective demand needed to expand the market’s pie is by no means found solely outside the country. We must not overlook the fact that both foreign tourists and foreigners residing in Korea ultimately engage in the same travel activities. Shouldn’t we begin to narrow the blind spots in the tourism market and policy—those that have arisen from three years of searching for a child carried on someone’s back—starting now?
