- Jung Chung-rae left the Americas audit delegation after his U.S. visa remained pending three days before departure.
- On October eighth, he switched to the committee’s Europe group; the Americas audit was scheduled for October eleventh through twenty-second, twenty twenty-six.
- The United States did not confirm a denial or explain the delay, and Jung urged people to avoid speculation about his case.
Rep. Jung Chung-rae left the Americas audit delegation after a U.S. visa delay kept his application pending three days before the team’s departure. The senior Democratic Party lawmaker switched to the committee’s Europe group on October 8.
The audit was scheduled for October 11–22, 2026. It was a nine-night, 12-day trip to South Korean diplomatic missions in the United States, Brazil, Colombia, and Canada.
Jung sits on the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee. The planned stops included South Korea’s embassy in Washington and its mission to the United Nations.
His application had not been resolved. The trip changed instead.
Jung said on Facebook that he could not wait without a time limit for an approval or denial. On October 9, he said the application was “formally under review.” He also cited Korean holidays and flights that had already been booked as factors in the switch.
The seven-person Americas team had six other members. They had completed their visa procedures or were eligible to travel through the visa-free Electronic System for Travel Authorization, leaving Jung as the only member whose U.S. travel authorization remained unsettled.
Washington offered its general visa policy, not a case explanation
The State Department said it reviews visa applications individually under U.S. law and maintains “the highest standards of national security and public safety.” The agency did not say whether Jung’s application had been refused or why it remained pending.
As of October 9, 2026, the application had not been publicly confirmed as formally denied. Washington had not disclosed a specific reason for the delay.
South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the U.S. side had not explained the hold-up. The ministry cautioned against treating one applicant’s case as a measure of the broader relationship between the countries.
Park expressed regret as Jung warned against speculation
Democratic Party spokesperson Park Sung-joon said the party regretted that the delay had obstructed Jung’s parliamentary work. Party leader Kim Min-seok said it disrupted the audit.
Jung warned against speculative or extreme claims about his case, saying they could harm the South Korea-U.S. alliance. His comments came as the visa remained unresolved and the delegation’s travel plans had changed.
Jung faced a similar visa problem in 2013
In October 2013, Jung also could not obtain a U.S. visa for an Americas audit and transferred to the Europe team. He had made official trips to the United States in 2012 and 2014.
The earlier episode followed the same basic itinerary problem: a visa obstacle kept him from joining an Americas audit, and he joined the Europe group instead. His planned 2026 tour again covered diplomatic missions across the region, including Washington and the United Nations.
