Pedestrians cross a busy road in central Seoul, Feb. 19. Foreign residents in Seoul feel less anchored in their local communities than they did a year ago, even as their overall satisfaction with life in the capital has improved, a new survey shows. Newsis
Foreign residents in Seoul feel less rooted in their local communities than they did a year ago, even as their overall satisfaction with life in the capital city has improved, according to a new survey.
The 2025 Seoul Survey, released Wednesday by the city government, found that the sense of belonging among foreign residents declined across every indicator measured on a 10-point scale, where 10 signifies “strongly agree” and 0 “not at all.” Asked whether neighbors help one another “in times of difficulty,” foreign residents gave an average score of 4.11, down from 4.54 a year earlier.
The number of registered foreign residents in Seoul was estimated at around 260,000 last year. The latest Seoul Survey, conducted among 2,500 foreign residents aged 20 and over who have lived in Korea for more than 91 days and currently reside in the city, found that other measures of neighborhood connection remained similarly low.
On average, foreign residents marked 4.05 for whether neighbors tend to know one another. They gave 3.90 for whether people discuss local issues and 3.81 for whether they take part in neighborhood events or gatherings — all lower than the previous year.
The survey also found that feelings of belonging vary widely depending on where people live in the capital. Foreigners in districts with larger, more established migrant communities and more active civic groups tend to report stronger attachment to their area.
The proportion of such residents who said they take part in regular gatherings stood at 77.8 percent, down from 81 percent a year earlier. Among the types of groups and meetings they attend, with multiple responses allowed, gatherings with friends from their home country were the most common at 31.6 percent, followed by hobby‑related events (21.1 percent), volunteer activities (21 percent) and religious gatherings (18.6 percent).
One encouraging development is that foreign residents are experiencing fewer incidents of discrimination.
Reports of unfair treatment across workplaces, schools, public institutions, commercial venues and streets have fallen. The decline suggests that stronger legal protections, public awareness campaigns and greater social understanding have improved everyday interactions between Koreans and non-Koreans.
Yet respondents still cite nationality, physical appearance and limited Korean language skills as the main reasons they feel they are treated differently, with more than 53 percent of those who experience discrimination saying they think their nationality was the reason, in a multiple choice question.
Source: Korea Times News
