The 13th Korea-Japan Director-Generals for Consular Affairs Meeting was held in Seoul on December 3, with officials from relevant ministries of both countries attending. Director-General for Overseas Koreans and Consular Affairs of MOFAT Lee Jeong-gwan and Director-General of the Japanese Foreign Ministry's Consular Affairs Bureau Hiroshi Fukada headed their respective delegations.

The two sides noted that since the visa exemption between Korea and Japan began, friendly exchanges between people of the two countries have grown, and the number of Koreans illegally residing in Japan, crimes committed by Koreans in Japan, and Korean nationals denied entry into Japan have dropped. Both sides have agreed to continue their cooperation to maintain such trends.

The two sides shared the view that the working holiday program is making significant contributions to the expansion of youth exchanges between Korea and Japan, and decided to continue to make efforts to significantly expand the issuance of working holiday visas at an earlier date, as agreed by heads of the two countries in 2008. Concerning internships for Korean students, the Japanese side said it will work to ease related visa requirements.

The two sides decided to strengthen cooperation between governments and missions in both countries in order to protect their own nationals in the other country. They also exchanged views on measures to protect their nationals travelling in dangerous areas, and to fight the spread of the H1N1 virus.

Regarding the recent fire accident at an indoor shooting range in Busan, the two sides discussed ways to properly handle the matter.

Both sides agreed to hold the next meeting in Tokyo next year.