Korea social insurance

A Korean payslip lists them in this order, usually in Korean only: 국민연금 (national pension), 건강보험 (health insurance), 장기요양 (long-term care) and 고용보험 (employment insurance).

On a ₩3m salary they come to ₩291,520 — about 9.7% of your pay. Your employer pays ₩299,020 in the same month, separately from your own deduction.

Pension, health and long-term care contributions are shared equally. Employment insurance is the exception: the unemployment portion is halved, but the job-security and training portion is paid by the employer alone. A fifth insurance — industrial accident — is entirely the employer’s.

Long-term care is calculated from the health-insurance premium. It is a percentage of your health insurance premium, not of your salary. That is why it is often printed as part of the health insurance line.

Your payslip also deducts income tax and local income tax.

This calculator does not work those out, because they depend on how many dependants you claim. Two people on the same salary can have different tax withheld. The employer looks the figure up in a National Tax Service table.

So subtracting this number from your salary does not give your take-home pay. Tax comes off too. On your slip you will find the four insurances and then two tax lines below them.

Income-tax settlement and insurance-premium settlement are separate. Health-insurance reconciliation can lead to an additional payment or a refund. This estimate does not include those adjustments.

Health insurance is compulsory. If you hold an alien registration card and work at a covered workplace, Article 109 of the National Health Insurance Act makes you a workplace subscriber. There is one narrow exemption: if you already have equivalent medical coverage under a foreign law, a foreign insurance policy or your employment contract, you or your employer can apply to be excluded.

The pension depends on your country. Article 126 of the National Pension Act enrols foreign workers automatically — unless your home country’s pension law does not cover Korean nationals. It is a reciprocity rule, so the answer is different for each nationality. Korea also has social security agreements with a number of countries that change how contributions are counted. Ask the National Pension Service which applies to you.

Lump-sum pension refunds have separate eligibility rules. Leaving Korea does not by itself establish eligibility for a refund. Ask the National Pension Service how your nationality, visa status and any applicable social security agreement affect your case. This calculator estimates contributions only.

Employment insurance depends on your visa. Workers covered by the Act on Foreign Workers’ Employment are enrolled, but the unemployment-benefit chapters apply only if they apply for them. For everyone else the law is applied in whole or in part depending on visa status and permitted activity.

However much you earn, your pension contribution stops at ₩313,020 a month. The contribution base is capped at ₩6,590,000.

There is a floor too. Earn less than ₩410,000 and the pension is still charged as if you earned that.

Both figures change every July, not every January. The current pair applies from 2026년 7월 ~ 2027년 6월.

Health-insurance minimums and maximums are separate from the pension limits. This calculator does not apply them, so estimates for very low or high pay can differ from the National Health Insurance Service bill.

Put in your taxable pay, not your contract figure. Korean salaries often include a tax-free meal allowance of ₩200,000. That part carries no contributions, so including it would overestimate these contributions.

Your pension contribution base can differ from current pay. It can be set through an annual determination or an eligible change request. Check the base currently recorded by your employer or the National Pension Service.

Over 65 and newly hired means no unemployment premium. If you were already at the same employer before turning 65 you keep paying. Only a fresh hire after 65 is exempt.

Calculate long-term care from the health insurance premium. The premium-based rate applies to that amount.