When an artist needs a multi-contract insurance ledger
An artist may have performance, production or technical-service contracts with several employers.
Looking only at one small contract can miss an opportunity to request Employment Insurance coverage through overlapping low-income contracts.
Combining contracts merely because payments arrive in the same month can create the opposite error.
This calculator starts with contract dates and fees and separates average monthly contractual income, remuneration after expenses, and premium budgets for each employer.
It distinguishes an unrequested application from the coverage period confirmed in an agency notice.
Artists and their families can identify missing applications, while small production businesses can prepare employer-specific reporting inquiries.
South Korean rules for 2026
Official sources were checked on 2026-10-07.
This is a premium-budget and aggregation-review tool for general cultural-service contracts in South Korea.
Verify the legal classification, final insured status and actual assessment against contracts and Korea Workers’ Compensation & Welfare Service notices.
Monthly contractual income differs from remuneration
Income tests qualification
Monthly income is the agreed fee converted into a monthly amount over the contract period.
The individual general-contract threshold is at least KRW 500,000 before expenses.
Net bank deposits and taxable income from a tax return are different figures.
Remuneration determines premiums
Subtract verified statutory exempt income, then deduct 25% expenses from the remainder.
This produces the remuneration used for premium calculations.
Actual business expenses and tax-return expense rates do not replace the fixed 25% rate.
Gross monthly income of KRW 500,000 with no exempt income produces KRW 375,000 of remuneration.
Although remuneration is below KRW 500,000, the individual income threshold is met.
Keeping the two amounts separate prevents incorrect exclusion and repeated application of the individual minimum base to aggregated contracts.
2026 income, remuneration and premium formulas
Convert the contract period into monthly income
Whole corresponding calendar-month contracts: total contractual fee ÷ number of months.
Other periods: total contractual fee × 30 ÷ total contract days.
Both endpoints count, and income is not rounded to whole won before testing the qualification boundary.
Subtract exemptions before the expense deduction
Monthly method: (total fee − verified exempt income) × 75% ÷ number of months.
Daily conversion: (total fee − verified exempt income) × 75% × 30 ÷ total contract days.
The displayed remuneration discards fractional won; verify actual reporting rounding with agency records.
Select the base and split the premium
Individual income qualification: use the larger of monthly remuneration and KRW 800,000.
Low-income aggregation qualification: use the contract remuneration without the KRW 800,000 minimum.
The combined premium rate is 1.6%, with 0.8% paid by the artist and 0.8% by the employer.
Each party’s monthly contract-period budget is base × covered days in the month ÷ calendar days in that month × 0.8%, discarding amounts below KRW 10.
A 31-day month and a 28-day month therefore use different denominators.
The 30-day income conversion and calendar-month budget allocation are separate calculation steps.
Aggregation requires a shared period and an application
Only verified cultural-service contracts selected for aggregation and individually below KRW 500,000 enter the low-income group.
At least two must be active on the same actual day, with combined average monthly income of at least KRW 500,000.
An individually qualifying high-income contract does not bring a low contract into this aggregation calculation; unverified and excluded contracts are also omitted.
Not requested
Meeting the numerical and overlap tests does not add premiums to the verified-input budget.
The calculator shows a conditional budget for later confirmation.
Submitted; pending
Record the actual application date.
A receipt is not treated as agency acceptance, so aggregation remains pending.
Agency period confirmed
Enter the start and end dates in the agency notice.
Only days shared by the qualifying overlap and that confirmed period enter the verified-input budget.
Qualifying overlap outside the notice period remains a candidate needing further confirmation.
Verify changed employer combinations and notices with different coverage periods separately.
Selecting a checkbox here does not submit an agency application or notify an employer.
Enter evidence from contracts step by step
- Verify the general coverage scope. The basic scope is a Korean national aged 15–64 personally providing cultural services.
Unknown age, nationality, employment-contract, subcontracting or other pension exceptions withhold amounts.
- Enter service dates by employer. Use the beginning and end of contractual service rather than payment dates.
Verify the reporting unit for several contracts with one employer; do not split one employer under different labels.
- Separate total fees from exemption evidence. Enter the full fee before tax and insurance deductions.
Do not treat advances and balances as separate contracts or deduct expenses before entering a fee that will be reduced by 25% again.
- Select low-income contracts and record application status. Select the contracts included in the intended application.
For a confirmed application, enter the common period in the notice; use separate runs for notices with different periods.
- Compare verified and conditional ledgers. Check each employer’s covered days and both shares.
Save the report and compare it with receipts, deduction statements and bills when contacting the agency or employers.
Dates must be within 2026 and amounts must be whole KRW.
An exempt amount above the fee or a contract shorter than one month stops calculation.
Up to 12 employer contracts can be reviewed together; use agency reporting records to separate more complex cases.
Worked example: KRW 300,000 and KRW 350,000 monthly income
Assume an artist contracts with employer A for KRW 900,000 and employer B for KRW 1,050,000 from 2026-10-01 to 2026-12-31.
Both are verified general cultural-service contracts with no exempt income.
Each lasts three months; gross monthly incomes are KRW 300,000 and KRW 350,000, totaling KRW 650,000.
Monthly remuneration and premium budgets assuming confirmed aggregation for both example contracts| Contract | Monthly income | Remuneration | Artist share | Employer share |
|---|
| Employer A | KRW 300,000 | KRW 225,000 | KRW 1,800 | KRW 1,800 |
| Employer B | KRW 350,000 | KRW 262,500 | KRW 2,100 | KRW 2,100 |
| Total | KRW 650,000 | KRW 487,500 | KRW 3,900 | KRW 3,900 |
If aggregation is confirmed for the entire period, the artist budget is KRW 3,900 per month and KRW 11,700 for three months.
Employers together also budget KRW 11,700, giving a combined total of KRW 23,400.
No KRW 800,000 minimum is added to either aggregated contract.
If unrequested or pending, the verified-input total is zero and these figures appear only as conditional amounts.
Two different results at the KRW 500,000 boundary
One contract paying KRW 500,000 monthly qualifies individually; the general minimum gives KRW 6,400 per party, or KRW 12,800 combined per month.
Two aggregated contracts paying KRW 250,000 each produce total remuneration of KRW 375,000, with KRW 3,000 per party and KRW 6,000 combined.
KRW 250,000 plus KRW 249,999 falls below the aggregation threshold.
Interpret budgets separately from actual bills
The verified-input budget reflects checked individual-coverage conditions or aggregation within the entered agency notice period.
It does not include unverified charges and is not a complete assessment.
The all-candidates-confirmed scenario already includes verified amounts, so never add the two cards together.
The first assessment after mid-month acquisition
Collection Act Article 16-4 starts monthly assessment after mid-month acquisition from the following month, with an exception for acquisition on the first day.
This calculator budgets the contract period including the first month, so the initial billed month can differ.
Separate billing timing from the final burden for the whole contract when planning cash.
Payment-time withholding and final settlement
Employers pay both shares and may withhold the artist share when paying remuneration.
Deduction statements for advances, interim payments and final balances differ from this monthly period budget.
An agency settlement after reporting loss of coverage can require additional payment or a return based on actual remuneration and previous payments; do not use this report as a final withholding instruction.
If scope or an active contract is unverified, affected monthly and total amounts show that verification is needed.
A withheld amount is not zero.
Explicitly excluded and below-threshold contracts remain distinguishable, and even a calculated partial amount does not establish coverage for all contracts.
Premium caps and application reference dates
2026 caps
Assessed artist premium caps are KRW 499,190 monthly and KRW 5,990,280 annually.
For a single contract, truncating each half below KRW 10 gives payable caps of KRW 499,180 monthly and KRW 5,990,160 annually.
Each party pays at most KRW 249,590 per full month in that single-contract calculation.
Single-contract period budgets prorate the monthly cap.
If multiple employer premiums require a cap, or a contributing contract exceeds it, the affected scenario’s allocation and totals are withheld.
The calculator does not invent proportional allocation across employers.
Application date and the first qualifying day
Employment Insurance Decree Article 104-5(3) requires an aggregation application by the 15th of the month following the month in which combined monthly income reaches KRW 500,000.
The example first qualifies on 2026-10-01, producing a next-month reference date of 2026-11-15.
Also verify application before contract end and the actual applicable filing deadline.
Changed combinations, holidays, receipt methods and retroactive acquisition require agency review.
A passed-reference warning is not an automatic rejection.
Practical uses for artists and employers
Artists working on several small productions
Check actual overlap even if each organization’s small fee did not independently qualify.
Keep candidate windows and application status with the contracts when reviewing an aggregation request.
Family members helping with schedules should use contractual service dates, rather than inferring coverage from bank deposits.
Employers planning production costs
Separate the artist share withheld from fees and the employer’s own premium cost.
After an aggregation notice, compare that employer’s remuneration and coverage dates with payroll and insurance records.
Do not charge both shares to the artist or treat the artist share as an employer-cost reduction.
Only part of the period has been confirmed
Enter the notice dates to budget the confirmed portion and compare additional candidate days.
The difference between verified and conditional amounts describes a possible additional budget, rather than an established debt or a refund.
Ask the agency about reporting units instead of arbitrarily combining duplicate-employer contracts or different notices.
Employer labels are sufficient; no resident registration numbers or contact details are needed.
Before sharing a saved report, recheck the dates, fees and confirmation status.
The calculator prepares consultation material in the browser and does not automatically transmit an income or premium ledger to the agency.
Frequently asked questions
Does remuneration below KRW 500,000 prevent coverage?
The qualification threshold uses monthly income before expenses.
With gross income of KRW 500,000 and no exempt income, remuneration is KRW 375,000, but the individual income threshold is met.
General individual coverage then uses a KRW 800,000 minimum base, producing KRW 6,400 for each party per full month.
Do not test qualification against the expense-deducted figure.
Is coverage automatic when two contracts total KRW 500,000?
No.
Contracts individually below the threshold must actually overlap, and the artist must want aggregation and apply for it.
Verify the agency result and coverage dates.
Unrequested or pending applications stay outside the verified-input total; only a conditional budget is shown.
Does each aggregated contract get a KRW 800,000 minimum?
Artists qualifying through income aggregation are excluded from the minimum-base treatment for low remuneration.
Use the verified remuneration for each contract.
Applying the individual minimum separately to low-income aggregated contracts can substantially overstate premiums.
Do two payments received in the same month establish aggregation?
Check service-contract dates and average monthly contractual income, rather than bank-payment dates.
Contracts ending and starting in the same month do not qualify as a shared period if they never actually overlap.
Track advances, interim payments and final payments separately from this period ledger.
Can I enter several contracts with one employer separately?
This calculator uses one verified contract per employer as its basic unit.
Ask the agency how multiple contracts with the same employer are reported and how income is calculated.
Do not invent a threshold by splitting employer names or arbitrarily combining fees and periods.
Can I use this for contracts shorter than one month?
Short-term artists have different income-threshold and minimum-base rules.
This calculator reports an input error and withholds calculations when a short-term contract is included.
Check the separate short-term service reporting and actual remuneration rules with the foundation or agency.
Can the saved figures be used directly for withholding or filing?
Monthly figures budget premiums across the contract period.
Initial assessment timing after mid-month acquisition, payment-time withholding and final settlement can differ.
Even the verified-input total is not a complete bill or an approved payment amount.
Compare deduction statements, bills and agency notices and use the ledger for consultation.
Are 2027 contracts and Durunuri support included?
Only 2026 contracts are calculated.
The cap notice expires on 2026-12-31, so verify the following year separately.
Durunuri support, income and local income tax, industrial accident insurance, National Pension, health insurance and unemployment benefits are outside this calculation.
Do not turn this ledger into take-home pay by subtracting assumed support or tax.
Official sources and update requirements
Current laws were checked directly through the National Law Information OPEN API and compared with effective-date text.
Employment Insurance Act MST284449, Decree MST288717 and Rules MST288723 use the 2026-09-18 versions.
Collection Act MST247481 uses the 2024-01-01 edition; Collection Decree MST280527 uses the 2025-12-23 version.
Future effective provisions are not applied to the 2026 calculation.
Expense deductions and the minimum base follow Ministry of Employment and Labor Notice 2024-93, serial 2100000252104, effective 2025-01-01.
Caps follow Notice 2025-118, serial 2100000271554, effective 2026-01-01 and valid through 2026-12-31.
Old guidance containing a 20% expense example does not replace the current 25% rule.
Recheck cap notices, expense deductions, the minimum base, rates, aggregation and filing rules for the next year.
Agency confirmation takes priority for reporting units, exemptions, initial assessments, settlement, age and nationality exceptions, subcontracting and multi-employer allocation.
Prepare the ledger for a reporting inquiry
Enter contract dates and fees, then review overlap windows, application status and employer-specific shares.
The TXT report includes inputs, monthly verified and conditional budgets, candidate periods, reference dates and official rules.
Saving does not submit an application or pay premiums; the report supports comparison with actual notices and reporting records.
Prepare contracts, exempt-income evidence, the multiple-workplace income aggregation application, receipts, agency notices and employer deduction statements.
Employment Insurance Rules Article 125-2 specifies Form 6-3 for aggregation.
The artist coverage department can answer coverage, reporting, correction, loss-of-coverage and premium questions at 02-6946-0650.
Resolve unverified items before deciding what to file or withhold.
Check reporting in the agency Total Service