One-hundred-fifty South Korean students were found to have had their passports seized by authorities in the Philippines for allegedly studying there without permits.

Initially, the number of such students had been thought to be around 110.

Filipino immigration authorities confiscated earlier in the month the passports of the South Korean students, most of whom are either in elementary or middle school, for attending English language camps without permits.
The immigration authorities have also cracked-down on four learning centers for such violations.

Filipino authorities said Friday that they would return the passports soon.

Officials from the South Korean Embassy visited Filipino authorities on Friday to ask for cooperation in releasing the students. The embassy says it stressed to the authorities that the students were victims.

An estimated 20-thousand South Korean students are in the Philippines to study English over the winter break. A considerable number of them are believed not to have proper permits.