Georgia Governor Pitches 90-Day Korean Manufacturing Visa to Trump

(GEORGIA, UNITED STATES) Georgia Governor Brian Kemp said he personally pitched a new “Manufacturing Visa” to President Trump that would let skilled Korean technicians enter the United States 🇺🇸 for short-term industrial work after a sweeping September 2025 immigration raid in Ellabell disrupted construction at a Hyundai–LG Energy Solution battery plant.

Kemp told reporters he asked for a program allowing Korean workers to stay for up to 90 days to install specialized equipment, train U.S. employees, and transfer technical know-how before returning home. He described the need as urgent after federal agents detained hundreds of workers tied to the project, creating delays and diplomatic strain.

Kemp said President Trump “understands the problem and supports the short-term stay of skilled workers to establish factories.” The Georgia governor added that Trump “sympathized with the need for a new visa system,” and that they discussed how to structure a Manufacturing Visa so that Korean technical personnel can support ongoing factory buildouts without fear of enforcement actions that halt projects midstream. According to Kemp, the goal is to create a clear, legal path for time-limited work that does not replace U.S. jobs but helps complex manufacturing sites get off the ground.

The proposed plan followed what officials called the largest single-site immigration raid in recent memory. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested 475 people, including more than 300 South Korean nationals, during the September action at the Ellabell site. The fallout was immediate: LG Energy Solution paused employee travel to the United States, and construction timelines slipped as contractors scrambled to replace detained experts. Kemp called the incident “very regrettable,” stressing it was a “federal government operation, not a state government action,” and said he “deeply sympathize[d] with the affected workers and Koreans.”

Policy proposal and federal context

Kemp’s Manufacturing Visa would create a narrow lane for short-term technical assignments—precisely the kind of work common during factory commissioning, equipment calibration, and production line training. By setting a limit of 90 days, the Georgia governor argues the visa would reassure local communities that foreign workers are on temporary assignments, not competing for permanent roles.

He said the measure would also reduce confusion by separating legal short stays for technicians from longer-term employment routes that follow different rules.

Supporters say the plan responds to a real gap:

• Korea does not have a dedicated U.S. visa category equivalent to arrangements the United States maintains with several other close trade partners.
• Korean firms building and operating U.S. plants often rely on the H-1B specialty occupation route, capped at 85,000 visas a year and awarded by lottery.
• For time-sensitive buildouts, the lead time—often cited as at least 8 months—and the uncertainty of the lottery create major planning headaches.
• Companies, facing strict deadlines to open battery and auto facilities, have sometimes rotated personnel on 90-day tourist waivers. Those entries do not allow work, and while some travel was previously overlooked, stepped-up enforcement under the Trump administration made that practice far riskier.

An official program could limit those risks while giving federal agencies clearer oversight. The Manufacturing Visa Kemp described would:

• Not be a backdoor to permanent status
• Target specific project tasks
• Require return after short stays
• Focus on knowledge transfer to American teams

Kemp emphasized the plan would clarify that foreign workers are temporarily working and not replacing American jobs—a key message in a charged political environment.

For employers comparing options, the H-1B remains the mainstay for many longer assignments but is a poor fit for urgent shop-floor problems or installation deadlines due to its limits. To understand the current H-1B system’s requirements and constraints, readers can review the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services overview for H-1B specialty occupations: https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/temporary-workers/h-1b-specialty-occupations.

Impact on projects, workers, and U.S.–Korea investment

The stakes reach beyond one Georgia job site. Korean firms have announced large production footprints across the South and Midwest, drawn by market access and federal incentives.

Key figures and commitments:

• Hyundai pledged to raise direct U.S. investment from $21 billion to $26 billion by 2028.
• South Korea announced a $150 billion shipbuilding effort within a broader $350 billion investment package, which includes major U.S. manufacturing projects supported by 2022 Inflation Reduction Act subsidies.

Many of these projects sit in Republican-led states, including Georgia, where timelines are tight and production schedules leave little margin for visa delays.

When U.S. plants depend on unique equipment made in Korea, they often need Korean engineers to install and fine-tune systems. Without the right visa, a plant can sit idle, costing jobs and money in local communities. Kemp said his proposed Manufacturing Visa would help avoid those stoppages while ensuring U.S. workers get hands-on training.

He argued this short-term help strengthens, rather than weakens, American manufacturing by speeding the handoff of skills and keeping projects on schedule.

Fallout from the Ellabell raid

The raid’s consequences illustrated what happens when those links snap:

• Managers faced gaps in critical roles after the Ellabell detentions.
• Construction slowed and technical work paused.
• A single 90-day delay on a battery project can ripple through supply chains, affecting auto assembly, parts suppliers, and local contractors.
• Workers living paycheck to paycheck are vulnerable when shifts are cut or crews are reassigned.

Kemp’s office has tried to steady nerves, assuring workers and investors that the state remains open for business while urging federal partners to set clear, usable rules.

Legislative and diplomatic developments

Broader policy ideas are also in motion. In Congress, the Partner with Korea Act would create a “K-visa” or E-4 style category, with 15,000 annual visa slots for skilled Korean nationals. Supporters say a dedicated lane would match the depth of the U.S.–Korea business relationship.

At a September 2025 AMCHAM seminar in Seoul, business leaders and lawyers pressed Washington to back the K-visa framework as essential for the next phase of joint manufacturing. U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau underscored the point, saying investment from Korean companies is central to President Trump’s economic vision and that those firms “cannot succeed without the ability for Korean executives to come to the United States, share their expertise and help train American workers.”

According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, momentum around a K-visa grew after the Georgia raid, as executives and local officials highlighted the mismatch between project timelines and current visa choices. Some in industry see the Manufacturing Visa and the K-visa as complementary:

• Manufacturing Visa: for quick, defined assignments (up to 90 days)
• K-visa: for longer stints by managers and professionals needing more than 90 days

Kemp has pressed that message during outreach in Seoul. In late October 2025, he met Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun, LG Energy Solution CEO Kim Dong-myeong, and senior officials to discuss solutions and reassure investors. He framed the Manufacturing Visa as a practical step that respects federal authority while addressing the realities on factory floors in Georgia.

Practical effects for employers, workers, and advocates

For immigration lawyers advising Korean firms, a short-stay visa could:

• Reduce the incentive to rely on visitor entries for work-like tasks (a legal exposure that grew costly in the Trump era)
• Bring consistency and predictability instead of ad hoc fixes
• Provide a quick path for technicians and reduce pressure on the H-1B lottery for roles that don’t fit that category

Worker advocates in Georgia say clarity matters for U.S. crews too. When a site brings in foreign specialists without clear rules, rumors spread and morale drops. A documented, time-limited program can set expectations and keep training on track.

For local leaders, the key question is balance—how to protect U.S. jobs while ensuring projects backed by public subsidies cross the finish line. Kemp argues the Manufacturing Visa hits that balance by narrowing the scope to specific tasks and capped durations, with a firm return requirement after up to 90 days.

Political and operational challenges

Political risks remain. Parts of President Trump’s base are skeptical of new visa categories, especially those tied to large foreign-owned plants. Kemp has tried to preempt those concerns by stressing the visa’s limited purpose and tying it to job creation for Americans.

His argument: without short-stay experts to launch and stabilize production lines, plants can’t hire and train local workers at scale. That message could resonate in districts where battery plants and auto suppliers promise thousands of future jobs.

Whether the federal government embraces Kemp’s plan will depend on:

1. Policy design details
2. Interagency coordination
3. The broader debate over work visas during the 2025–2026 period

If Washington advances the proposal, agencies would need to define:

• Which roles qualify
• What documentation proves task-based needs
• How to prevent misuse

Processing timelines would be critical: a slow “short-stay” program would defeat its purpose. Employers would also seek clarity on renewals for phased projects, where teams might need several discrete visits across a year while staying within the “short, specific tasks” model.

Bottom line

For now, companies with Korean partners will continue to map projects against existing categories, including H-1B for specialty roles and other longer-term options where appropriate. Many will watch Georgia’s outreach to President Trump closely.

If the Manufacturing Visa advances, it could become a model for other sectors that face similar short-term technical needs, from semiconductor fabs to shipyards and advanced materials plants.

Kemp’s pitch draws on a simple premise: targeted visas can protect U.S. workers and communities when they are built for real-world timelines. After Ellabell’s shock, he’s betting a clear, legal 90-day channel for installation and training can keep Georgia’s factory boom on track without repeating the turmoil of September.