Review a Korean work-ability assessment and its deadlines
This calculator applies South Korea’s 2026 National Basic Living Security work-ability rules.
It compares a previously assessed medical stage and activity scores with the governing notice, then helps you prepare for reassessment or review.
It is useful for recipients with chronic conditions and family members handling assessment records, conditional-benefit notices or expiring decisions.
A diagnosis, medical certificate or personal description of symptoms does not establish inability to work.
The National Pension Service evaluates the evidence and the local authority makes the relevant decision.
Leave missing values unknown and distinguish authority-confirmed inputs from assumptions.
Every score-based result is an expected assessment, not an official decision.
Confirm any change to self-sufficiency participation conditions with the local authority before changing attendance.
Noncompliance with an existing condition can affect all or part of the individual’s livelihood benefit.
What to copy from your documents
Final medical assessment stage
Use the NPS final stage: outside the stages, 1, 2, 3 or 4.
For multiple conditions, enter the final stage after the authority’s adjustments.
Do not add one again or sum individual disease stages.
An unknown stage is different from an assessed outside-stage result.
Activity score groups
Copy the movement, chronic-symptom and cognition group scores, plus the whole-assessment total if available.
The short-assessment groups are already components of the whole score.
Adding them again would count the same evidence twice.
This tool does not generate scores from symptoms.
Fixed condition and review history
Confirm whether the assessment treats the condition as fixed, rather than choosing that status simply because illness has lasted a long time.
Also confirm regular-review status and at least three consecutive unable-to-work decisions.
Ordinary fixed status and permanent-fixed reassessment deferral are distinct.
Decision and receipt dates
The decision date, receipt of the first notice and receipt of a redetermination notice serve different purposes.
Use actual receipt dates for review references, not the document’s issue or mailing date.
An actual expiry stated in the notice takes priority over a calculated scenario.
Four routes to an expected unable-to-work result
Article 11 of the Notice on Work-Ability Assessment Standards provides the following routes.
Thresholds include equality.
In the short assessment, movement and chronic symptoms must both meet their limits, while cognition is a separate alternative.
It is not necessary to pass both short and whole-assessment routes.
Medical, short-assessment and whole-assessment thresholds under Article 11| Route | Applicable evidence | Threshold |
|---|
| Medical stage | Final medical assessment | Stage 3 or 4 |
| Short assessment | Medical stage 1 or 2 | Movement ≤10 AND chronic ≤3
OR cognition ≤13 |
| Stage 2 whole assessment | Final stage 2 plus total activity score | ≤63 |
| Stage 1 whole assessment | Final stage 1 plus total activity score | ≤55 |
Stages 3 and 4 do not require activity scores to establish the medical-stage route.
NPS guidance also treats an assessed outside-stage result as outside activity assessment, so low activity scores cannot reverse it here.
If no known route passes and relevant evidence is missing, the calculator withholds the overall conclusion.
A threshold-not-met result does not establish ineligibility to apply or replace an official able-to-work decision.
Score ranges and consistency checks
- Movement: five items scored 1–4 each, giving a group range of 5–20.
- Chronic symptoms: two items scored 1–5 each, giving 2–10.
- Cognition: six items scored 1–5 each, giving 6–30.
- Other items: alcohol-related problems, qualifications, work experience, motivation, age and learning capacity together give 5–15.
Adding the item limits in Annex 2 gives a derived whole-score range of 18–75.
That range is calculated from the item table; the items do not all use the same five-point scale.
When all group scores and the total are entered, total − movement − chronic − cognition must lie between 5 and 15.
With partial evidence, the supplied values must still permit a consistent total.
A blank score is unknown, not zero.
If a partial sum is already 60 while the total is 55, check whether the figures came from the same assessment rather than adjusting them to pass validation.
A displayed score gap describes distance from the threshold, not a recommendation to lower a score or change treatment.
One year by default; longer periods require authority confirmation
Article 12 starts with one year from the unable-to-work decision.
It allows longer validity in specified circumstances, but does not guarantee the longest period automatically.
Use the actual notice expiry whenever available; otherwise any displayed expiry is a planning scenario.
Possible longer validity under Article 12, distinguished from the one-year default| Assessment status | Ordinary reference | Regular review + 3 consecutive unable decisions |
|---|
| Stage 1, not fixed | 1 year default | 1 year default |
| Stage 1, fixed | 2 years possible | 3 years possible |
| Stages 2–4, not fixed | 2 years possible | 4 years possible |
| Stages 2–4, fixed | 3 years possible | 5 years possible |
Three consecutive decisions alone are insufficient for the regular-review extension.
Unknown fixed status or history cannot establish the longer period.
Registered-disability and permanent-fixed deferral provisions need separate review, and Article 13 permits adjustment when circumstances improve.
Future calendar dates remain scenarios under the currently checked rules, not a promise that future rules or decisions will be unchanged.
Separate the 30-, 60- and 90-day references
30 days before expiry: periodic reassessment
To seek another unable-to-work decision after expiry, Article 12 calls for the certificate and treatment records by 30 days before expiry.
The calculator subtracts 30 calendar days from the actual expiry, or from an explicitly labelled default scenario if the notice expiry is missing.
This renewal preparation step is different from challenging a decision.
60 days after the first notice: redetermination
Article 14 provides a redetermination application within 60 days after receiving the decision notice.
Confirm the required application, treatment records and supporting evidence with the local authority.
Use receipt of the first notice for this reference, not receipt of the later redetermination result.
90-day remedies: check each notice
The notice provides objection, administrative appeal and litigation routes within 90 days after receipt of a redetermination result.
The original result form also describes a separate direct 90-day administrative appeal or litigation route from the first notice.
Redetermination is not described here as a mandatory first step, nor as automatically extending every other remedy’s time limit.
These are nominal calendar references obtained by adding days after receipt.
They do not automatically adjust for Saturdays or public holidays, disputed service, filing methods or other procedural rules.
Confirm the operative deadline and receiving office from the actual notice, especially when time is short.
Worked examples and interpretation
Stage 1 at 55 versus 56
Movement 15, chronic 6 and cognition 20 leave 14 other points in a total of 55.
The scores are consistent and the stage 1 whole-assessment route passes.
A total of 56 leaves 15 other points and remains valid input, but is one point above that route’s threshold.
Stage 2 at 63 versus 64
Movement 18, chronic 8 and cognition 25 leave 12 other points in a total of 63.
The stage 2 whole-assessment route passes at equality.
A total of 64 is one point above it; other routes and missing evidence must still be reviewed.
Short-assessment logic
Movement 10 and chronic 3 pass together.
Movement 10 with chronic 4 does not pass that pair.
Cognition 13 can independently pass the cognition alternative, whereas 14 is above its boundary.
The supplied example’s calendar
A decision on 2026-10-01 gives a one-year default scenario ending 2027-09-30, with a 30-day preparation reference of 2027-08-31.
For confirmed fixed stage 2 and qualifying regular-review history, five years is a possible authority-set period, ending 2031-09-30 in the example.
Receipt on 2026-10-05 gives nominal references of 2026-12-04 for 60 days and 2027-01-03 for 90 days.
An actual expiry of 2027-11-08 instead gives a preparation reference of 2027-10-09.
Receipt on 2026-11-08 gives 2027-01-07 at 60 days and 2027-02-06 at 90 days.
The current formula does not determine holiday extensions or future legal changes.
Conditional benefits and Medical Aid household checks
Articles 7 and 8 of the National Basic Living Security Act Enforcement Decree distinguish recipients with ability to work and conditional recipients.
An official unable-to-work decision is a route outside the relevant work-condition group.
A score-based expectation does not change an existing notice, so confirm the decision’s application and any participation-condition change with the local authority.
An able-to-work finding also does not automatically impose every participation condition.
Childcare, family care, pregnancy or recent childbirth, education and other qualifying circumstances may allow conditionality to be deferred.
This tool does not determine all those exceptions.
If attendance has become difficult, ask about the proper change procedure and supporting evidence.
Medical Aid Enforcement Decree Article 3 includes a Type 1 household route based on the whole household’s recognised inability to work.
Check whether other members are under 18, at least 65, or otherwise officially within the relevant categories.
The household input is a consultation prompt, not an income, asset, family-support or individual-exception assessment.
Once the authority confirms Type 1 or Type 2, use the existing copay tool for the separate cost calculation.
Medical stages require records, not a symptom shortcut
Musculoskeletal conditions
Assessment considers limb or spinal function, imaging, range of motion and treatment history.
Pain intensity alone does not establish a stage.
Mental and neurological conditions
Treatment duration, persistent symptoms and social, occupational and daily-life limitations require review.
Diagnosis alone cannot assign a stage, and treatment-period exceptions exist.
Cardiovascular conditions
Treatment response, activity restrictions, complications and test findings are considered together.
A cardiac-function number should not be isolated from the other criteria.
Respiratory conditions
Treatment, breathlessness, ventilation or diffusion findings and oxygen measurements form part of the evidence.
A single test or self-rating is not a final assessment.
Annex 1 covers 11 condition groups and specifies restrictions and exceptions for assessing multiple diseases within a group.
This implementation therefore accepts the final NPS stage for any supported assessment, instead of converting a short symptom questionnaire into a medical judgment.
Check the original annex and your actual assessment records for missing conditions or adjustments.
Prepare, review, save and contact the authority
- Prepare the assessment records and decision notice, identifying final stage, scores, decision date and actual expiry. Keep assumptions separate from confirmed evidence.
- Review each route and the overall state. If a consistency error appears, compare the source score groups and total instead of modifying figures to fit a desired result.
- Separate periodic reassessment from a challenge to the decision. Confirm actual receipt dates before saving a TXT memo or calendar references.
- Ask the local community service centre or city, county or district office about submission. Generally check a certificate issued within the last two months and recent two-month treatment records; mental-health treatment duration, simplified records and deferral exceptions require the applicable guidance.
You do not need to enter your name, resident registration number or a detailed diagnosis.
Assessment inputs are not automatically saved or included in analytics events; file export is your choice.
Retain the reference-date warnings with any exported file, and keep the actual filing receipt and authority instructions separately.
Frequently asked questions
Does a medical certificate prove inability to work?
No.
Medical assessment, any required activity assessment and the authority’s decision are separate steps.
A diagnosis name alone does not establish the result.
Must I fill every missing score?
Leave unavailable evidence blank.
Confirmed stage 3 or 4 can establish the medical route without activity scores, but missing evidence needed for other routes keeps the conclusion open.
Is outside-stage the same as unknown?
No.
Outside-stage is an actual assessment outcome and is outside activity assessment.
Unknown means the stage is unavailable, not outside-stage or zero.
Do two conditions automatically add a stage?
The annex has condition-group rules and exceptions.
Enter the adjusted final NPS stage and do not add one again.
This calculator does not combine individual disease stages.
Do three consecutive unable decisions guarantee five years?
No.
Regular-review status, stage and fixed status also matter.
Five years is a possible period for qualifying fixed stages 2–4, subject to the actual authority decision.
Can I stop self-sufficiency participation after an expected unable result?
An expected result does not remove existing conditions.
Confirm the official assessment and changed notice first.
An able result may still allow a separate deferral consultation.
Are reassessment and redetermination the same?
Periodic reassessment before expiry concerns continuity.
Redetermination within 60 days of the first notice challenges the result.
Separate 90-day remedies must also be checked against the correct notice.
Does expected inability guarantee Medical Aid Type 1?
No.
Household composition, eligibility rules and individual exceptions need separate confirmation.
The household check is only a prompt for consultation and does not calculate copays.
Official sources and rule dates
Checked 2026-11-08 against the National Law Information OPEN API and NPS guidance.
The assessment notice is MOHW Notice No. 2025-30, effective 2025-02-20 and current for this 2026 Korean calculation.
Recheck amendments, annual guidance, actual assessment records, service dates, filing methods and holiday handling before relying on an operative deadline.
Prepare the next practical step
Save the assessment references and ask the local authority to confirm the applicable period and required records.
Once eligibility and benefit type are confirmed, use the related tools for the separate financial questions.