Compare Blue Seed support with actual employer costs
South Korean rules for 2026, checked 2026-10-07.
Blue Seed, also called Pureun Ssiat, is the SME Retirement Pension Fund operated by the Korea Workers’ Compensation and Welfare Service, or COMWEL.
This annual planning tool records verified inputs and separates employer cash support from additions to worker pension accounts.
It does not issue enrollment approval or an official payment decision.
The fund pools retirement contributions from multiple small businesses for collective investment.
When introducing it, compare both the money the company pays and the money credited for workers.
Employer support returns to the employer account; worker support goes to a worker pension account.
Deducting both 10% payments from company costs understates the employer cash requirement.
Decisions this calculator supports
- Business owners introducing a retirement plan can compare contributions before support with annual net cost after verified support.
- Payroll staff and family members helping a small business can reconcile prior-year remuneration, current-year wages and qualifying payments worker by worker.
- Workers can check account additions separately from the support received by the company.
Enrollment size and financial support have separate requirements
Enrollment-size reference
The previous size limit was 30 or fewer regular workers through 2026-06-30.
From 2026-07-01 through 2026-12-31, the limit is fewer than 50 workers: exactly 50 does not pass.
The statutory expansion to fewer than 100 workers starts on 2027-01-01, but the support formula in this calculator remains limited to 2026.
Size requirement for 2026 support
Ministry of Employment and Labor Notice 2025-130 requires 30 or fewer regular workers on the date the business submitted its enrollment application.
Public institutions covered by the exclusion in the notice are excluded.
A business with 31 workers may meet the expanded enrollment-size requirement after July 2026 without meeting this financial support requirement.
Keep the original application count separate from the current workforce.
When headcount changes, check the original application and legally assessed regular-worker count with COMWEL.
This tool does not calculate the statutory headcount for a business employing daily workers.
For 2026 support, the worker threshold generally uses 2025 Employment Insurance average monthly remuneration, rather than the current monthly salary.
It must be below KRW 2,810,000; exactly KRW 2,810,000 is excluded.
Businesses outside the monthly assessment system must verify the prior-year National Tax Service employment-income monthly average specified in Article 2(3)(2) of the notice.
Keep four worker amounts separate
2025 monthly remuneration
This amount tests the financial support threshold.
Do not substitute current contractual pay or divide the current annual salary by 12 and call it reported prior-year remuneration.
Check the settled remuneration records with COMWEL and leave special cases, such as missing prior-year data for a new worker, pending verification.
2026 annual wages
This amount checks the minimum employer contribution.
Article 23-7(1) of the Employee Retirement Benefit Security Act requires at least 1/12 of annual wages.
Verify the covered wage period and whether bonuses or allowances count as wages using payroll records and agency guidance.
2026 employer contribution
This is current-year paid or planned employer principal.
The calculator sums it across workers for employer contribution costs and current-year worker principal accumulation.
Keep past-service transfers, existing account balances and investment returns outside this amount.
Qualifying paid contribution
Enter only the portion meeting the support requirements.
Verify that it is a current-year regular contribution paid on time within the 2026 support period.
Exclude late payments, past-service transfers and payments outside the support period; this amount cannot exceed the employer contribution above.
When planning enrollment before payment, the entered contribution is a scenario.
Keep the worker pending and use the conditional comparison until actual payment, scope, period and application have been verified.
Keep workers without support in the ledger with national support excluded if their contribution costs still need to be included.
2026 support and net-cost formulas
10% for each recipient separately
Each support amount = min(floor(qualifying paid contribution / 100) × 10, KRW 281,000)
Apply 10/100 and truncate amounts below KRW 10.
Annual employer and worker-account support are each capped at KRW 281,000 per worker, with at most 30 supported workers per business.
If 30 workers all reach the annual cap, the business total for each recipient category is KRW 8,430,000.
This is the current-year ceiling and does not guarantee the next year or a cumulative three-year payment.
Employer net cash cost
Employer contribution + current fee − employer national support − local employer cash support
Do not deduct worker account support from company costs.
Contributions and later support payments occur at different times, so the net figure alone is not the cash that must be available before payment.
Worker current-year principal accumulation
Employer contribution + worker national account support + local worker account support
This totals new principal and account additions for the current year.
It is separate from the whole account valuation, an immediately payable retirement benefit or a future balance including investment returns.
The minimum contribution display rounds annual wages ÷ 12 upward to a whole won.
Truncating support below KRW 10 is the notice rule; rounding up the displayed minimum is a budgeting method to avoid a fractional-won shortfall.
Truncating a combined annual base can differ from the sum of actual quarterly settlements, so reconcile the estimate with agency notices.
Steps from input to enrollment preparation
- Check the enrollment record. Enter first business enrollment, the original application headcount and public-institution status.
For a new introduction scenario, align the planned enrollment date with a review date on or after it in 2026.
- Verify the support period. Obtain the actual end date of the three-year period from first business enrollment.
A new worker or resubmitted application does not automatically restart the three years.
- Separate the worker amounts. Enter prior-year remuneration, current-year wages, contribution principal and the qualifying regular portion for each worker.
Worker numbers are used; names are not collected.
- Select verification status. Apply verified worker inputs and separately verify business requirements and period.
If either is pending, national support appears only in the conditional comparison.
- Check fees and local recipients. Enter contract fees and verified local amounts, then compare net cost, accumulation and the no-support case.
Save the TXT report for your agency enquiry and prepare sufficient cash before contributions are due.
A KRW 2.8 million payment has different results while verification is pending
Assume a nonpublic business with 10 workers at application, a valid 2026 support period, 2025 monthly remuneration of KRW 2,700,000 and 2026 annual wages of KRW 33,600,000.
Employer principal and qualifying paid contributions are both KRW 2,800,000, with zero current fees and local support.
Pending and verified support compared by employer cost and worker current-year accumulation| Status or scenario | Employer national support | Employer net cost | Worker accumulation |
|---|
| Default pending state | KRW 0 | KRW 2,800,000 | KRW 2,800,000 |
| Business and worker verified | KRW 280,000 | KRW 2,520,000 | KRW 3,080,000 |
| Add KRW 28,000 local worker support | KRW 280,000 | KRW 2,520,000 | KRW 3,108,000 |
Cap and truncation boundaries
A qualifying base of KRW 2,799,999 yields KRW 279,990 for each recipient after truncation.
A base of KRW 2,810,099 is capped at KRW 281,000 each.
A KRW 99 base produces zero support; KRW 100 produces KRW 10.
Only part of a contribution qualifies
If employer principal is KRW 3,000,000 but only KRW 1,000,000 meets the timely-payment requirements, each support amount is KRW 100,000.
Apply the formula to the verified qualifying portion instead of multiplying all payments by 10%.
Interpret pending verification and zero results
Pending does not mean support is impossible.
It means that business or worker requirements have not yet been verified, so support is excluded from the main cost and shown only in the conditional scenario.
A failed prior-year pay threshold, excluded public institution, excessive original headcount, missing 2026 support period or user exclusion also produces zero in the conditional national support calculation.
Do not treat a conditional estimate as an approved payment
Reducing available company cash based on conditional support can cause a shortfall before support is actually paid.
Prepare the no-support contribution budget first, then update cash flow with verified payment notices and timing.
When more than 30 candidates are selected, the calculator holds the result for verification rather than choosing the financially most favorable workers.
A minimum contribution shortfall requires review of wage scope and actual employer payments.
Worker account support is not counted as satisfying missing employer principal.
Marking inputs verified still does not replace the agency’s final assessment.
Apply only verified fee and local-support conditions
Scope of a zero fee
The official fund guide describes a three-year fee waiver for new enrollment in 2026.
Do not assume identical treatment for existing contracts or other enrollment years; enter the annual contract amount you have verified.
The default zero fee is illustrative and does not confirm a waiver for every business.
Enter a separate assumed fee after support ends to distinguish fee changes from the end of financial support.
Who receives local support?
The ministry’s Gunsan cooperation example of 2026-03-17 adds local support for the worker account.
It does not establish the same benefit nationwide or turn worker support into employer cash.
Verify local eligibility, budget, overlapping support and payment method, then enter employer cash and worker account additions separately.
Use zero if local support is absent or remains unverified.
If local employer support exceeds the remaining cost, net cost is displayed as zero with the excess identified for review.
That excess is not a separately payable cash benefit or an automatic refund entitlement.
Separate period expiry from this year’s qualifying payments
The notice provides a three-year period from the first enrollment of the business.
Enter the agency-verified end date and read remaining days as calendar days including the review date.
Date arithmetic cannot replace verification of the individual period and actual regular-payment dates.
Zero remaining days can coexist with 2026 support
First enrollment on 2023-06-01, a verified end date of 2026-05-31 and review on 2026-10-07 produce zero remaining days.
However, verified timely regular contributions paid within that year’s eligible period remain in the 2026 annual comparison.
First enrollment on 2023-01-01 with support ending on 2025-12-31 leaves no support period in 2026, so national support is zero.
The post-support comparison uses the same employer principal, your separately entered future fee and zero national or local support.
It isolates the assumed cost change and does not predict wage increases, contract renewal or the 2027 support notice.
Checks before contribution payment and support application
- Reconcile the original enrollment application and headcount calculation; check institutional exclusions.
- Verify the prior-year remuneration record and current-year wage scope without combining different bases.
- Check the regular contribution deadline, actual payment and period from first business enrollment.
- Ask COMWEL about the application, quarterly payment and rounding records, and available budget.
- Verify fee contracts and local-support recipients and overlap rules before saving the comparison.
The calculator does not submit enrollment or support claims.
The TXT contains the entered ledger and verification status; share it only where needed and keep actual worker names separately.
Investment returns, retirement income tax, future account forecasts and self-employed personal IRP support decisions are outside this calculation.
Frequently asked questions
Do 40 workers qualify for both enrollment and support?
After 2026-07-01, fewer than 50 workers meets the enrollment-size reference.
The support notice separately requires 30 or fewer at the original application.
Enrollment expansion is not treated as expanded national support.
Does current pay above KRW 2.81 million remove support?
The 2026 test generally uses 2025 Employment Insurance remuneration or other prior-year records specified by the notice.
Do not change the threshold result using current salary alone; verify the required record and qualifying contribution with COMWEL.
Can the company deduct both support amounts?
Employer support goes to the employer account; worker support goes to the participant contribution account.
National and local worker support add to accumulation and are never deducted from employer net cost.
Are unpaid or late contributions supported at 10%?
The notice uses current-year regular contributions paid by the required deadline.
Enter only the qualifying portion and retain pending status until the facts have been verified.
Why can support be lower than the headline maximum?
Apply 10% to the qualifying base, truncate below KRW 10 and cap annual support at KRW 281,000 for each recipient.
Smaller payments yield smaller support; actual quarterly rounding also needs reconciliation.
Does the three-year period start when each worker is hired?
It starts at first enrollment of the business.
Adding workers or resubmitting an application does not automatically renew the period.
Enter the end date verified with COMWEL.
Is the 2026 fee waiver permanent?
The announced three-year waiver for new enrollment in 2026 requires confirmation under the individual contract.
Enter current and post-support fees separately; future waivers or support levels are not guaranteed.
What should I check if actual payments differ?
Check prior-year remuneration, original headcount, regular versus transferred contributions, deadlines, support period, quarterly rounding, actual application and approval, and budget.
Agency assessment and notices control payment.
Official sources and the next review
Current status, articles and supplementary provisions were checked directly through the National Law Information OPEN API on 2026-10-07.
Employee Retirement Benefit Security Act ID 009883 / MST 284455 was promulgated on 2026-03-17; relevant provisions took effect on 2026-07-01, with separate penalty provisions effective on 2026-09-18.
Enforcement Decree ID 010035 / MST 284693 took effect on 2026-03-24.
Support Notice ID 81493 / 2100000271224 took effect on 2026-01-01; eligibility and support levels apply through 2026-12-31 and can be adjusted or discontinued within the available budget.
For the next rule year, recheck enrollment size, remuneration thresholds, annual caps, rounding and support periods, fee contracts and local programs.
COMWEL Blue Seed enquiries: 1661-0075.
Save the ledger and continue with the next calculation
Replace illustrative values with actual records, save the comparison and use it for your COMWEL enrollment and support consultation.
For long-term plan choices, see the DC versus DB comparison; for a regular retirement settlement, use the severance calculator; for the company budget, use total labor cost.