Got into a bar fight in Itaewon, both of us hurt, police took statements — I'm on an E-2, how bad is this?

You are almost certainly both — suspect and victim at once — and that is normal in Korea for a fight where both sides landed punches. "He started it" matters less than Americans expect; self-defense is narrowly construed in mutual fights. The "settlement" his friend is talking about is a real feature of Korean criminal procedure, not a shakedown in itself, though the deportation threat is leverage, not law. A single assault case of this kind rarely ends anyone's E-2, but the outcome that lands in your file depends on how the next few weeks are handled.

What this is under Korean law

If neither of you has an injury requiring treatment, this is assault (폭행, pokhaeng) under Article 260 of the Criminal Act — up to two years' imprisonment or a fine of up to KRW 5 million. If the "two-week diagnosis" (진단서, jindanseo — a medical certificate stating the estimated treatment period) holds up, his side becomes bodily injury (상해, sanghae) under Article 257, up to seven years or a fine of up to KRW 10 million. The distinction matters for another reason: assault cannot be prosecuted against the victim's express will (반의사불벌죄, banuisa bulbeoljoe), so a settlement ends it outright; injury can proceed regardless, with the settlement counting in mitigation instead.

Your split lip is potentially an injury too. Get your own medical certificate this week. A case with two certificates is a mutual injury case (쌍방 상해, ssangbang sanghae), and the police assess both sides.

How the process works in Korea

The station statements were the start of the investigation. Each of you will likely be called back for a formal interview as a suspect, and the police will pull CCTV from the bar and the street. They then decide, for each of you, whether to refer the case to the prosecutor (송치, songchi) or close it (불송치, bulsongchi). The prosecutor, who alone can charge, chooses between indictment, a summary fine, a suspension of indictment (기소유예, giso yuye), or nothing. First-offense mutual fights with a settlement frequently end at the fine or below; that is a range, not a promise.

Settlement (합의, hapui) is a private agreement — usually a sum of money in exchange for a written statement that the other person does not wish punishment (처벌불원서, cheobeol burwonseo). Nobody can force you to pay, and the amount is negotiable; a lawyer conducting that negotiation keeps it from becoming an auction driven by "deportation" talk. Because the exposure is mutual, settlements in these cases are often reciprocal or cancel out.

Your situation as a foreign national

A departure suspension (출국정지, chulguk jeongji) is uncommon in a mutual bar fight with a fixed address and job, but it is available under Article 4 of the Immigration Act; do not book travel without checking. You are entitled to an interpreter at the formal interview — insist on a proper one, not an officer who "speaks some English." A conviction or fine is a fact the Immigration Office may consider at renewal or in a status review; a single low-level assault fine is at the mild end of that spectrum, but immigration outcomes are decided by the Immigration Office, not the court, and no one on the other side of this fight has any say in them. Employers are sometimes contacted to confirm identity; that is not a report of guilt. MEGA X handles the criminal case; where it touches your status, we coordinate with an immigration specialist as part of your defense.

What to do now, and what not to do

Do not reply to the friend. Do not pay anything through a messenger. Get your certificate, write down your own timeline while it is fresh, and identify anyone who saw the first shove. Do not post about it. Prepare your account with your lawyer before the formal interview; your 4 a.m. statement already exists and your interview must match it. Let counsel open the settlement channel — the tone of the first contact sets the price.

From a former police investigator's perspective

In mutual fights, investigators are not deciding who was rude; they are deciding who struck first and whether the response was proportionate, and CCTV answers most of that. What they notice in the file is who behaved responsibly afterward: who obtained a certificate, who cooperated, who tried to settle, and who escalated with threats. Messages threatening deportation are a poor look for the person who sends them, and a good reason to preserve them.

Fights like this are handled every week. The ones that go badly are the ones where the foreign party either ignored it or paid out of fear. We can review the messages and the station paperwork before your interview — by text consultation or at +82-2-522-3959.

— MEGA X Law Firm Korea, Criminal Defense Team