The Nepalese in South Korea are mainly of three distinct ethnic groups: Khas, Madhesis and Janjatis.
After Nepal restored its democracy in the 1990s, labour laws were changed to allow Nepalese youths to go abroad in search of work.
[2] The Nepalese community in South Korea thus consists primarily of migrant workers, but also has large numbers of students as well as Nepalese women married to South Korean men they met through international matchmaking agencies.
In 2010, they opened a shelter in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul to provide charitable assistance for Nepalese who become unemployed or otherwise face difficulties.
[7] South Korea's multilingual Migrant Workers' Television was founded by Nepali migrant worker Minod Moktan (Minu), a human rights activist who lived in South Korea for nearly 18 years before being deported in October 2009.