The Justice Ministry is seeking to reinstate a written exam while toughening naturalization interviews for foreigners married to Koreans amid growing concerns over social maladjustment due to language barriers and lack of understanding of Korean society.

The government is also considering waiving written exam requirements for those who take part in a social orientation program for a designated period.

The measures come as the ranks of naturalized foreign spouses has swelled, growing from
34-thousand in 2002 to a hundred thousand as of this year. After two years of marriage, foreign spouses are exempted from written tests and acquire Korean nationality, making it difficult to assess whether they are able to function as Korean citizens.

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