The Seoul immigration office went to a total no touch system. It was almost as if I were not physically present although I was actually there today. The office was moved to the farthest place in the city from the center with still being in Seoul.
The immigration office was always close to the National Assembly building but a couple years ago somebody decided to move it far west and South near Kimpo. At first I wondered why they put the immigration office so far away but then considering Corona the new building gives adequate space for social distancing.
Like any public building it's no mask no service. There is a big sign at the door saying to call to confirm. I somehow was expecting someone to answer but instead it was an automated system notifying me that my appointment was confirmed. If I had no phone of if my battery was dead I would be out of luck. The man at the gate told me to call the number. I thought he said to turn off my phone. It's hard to hear anything behind the masks.
Next I had to buy the immigration system stamp. This is not a stamp but just a digital representation of a stamp. My passport was scanned and I was issued a virtual stamp for 30,000 Korean won for a new ID card.
They said it will take four weeks to finish the transaction and send me my new ID. Total transaction fee turned out to be 34,000 Korean won and total transaction time is four weeks. That's only 2,400,000 seconds. I know bitcoin is heavy and transaction times are slow but has anyone experience four week transaction times?
The office for Chinese is on the first floor. They get VIP treatment for being next door neighbors with Korea. The office for all other foreigners is on the second floor. When I was there a French foreign exchange student who explained in English that she was one day late on her visa extension. The immigration people were real nice and said because she made the appointment and came it's okay and they will give her a grace period.
All appointments are taken online so no more than six people are served every ten minutes. This makes it very difficult to get an appointment and also gives the room an empty feeling. I remember the old immigration office was a lot smaller and a lot more crowded. I'm glad that the city made a new building and foreigners in Korea could actually feel welcomed here.
Well the world is not perfect but things are changing. There was a time I would have to buy a stamp and somebody would lick it and put it on my visa application. Now it is all done digitally. The day will come when governments will also seek blockchain technology for daily interactions. When I looked at the government workers today I see they are not the enemeies of blockchain technology but they are potential clients and users.
Finally I will leave with one song:
Immigration Man by Crosby Stills and Nash.
