Korea Livelihood Benefit Income and Payment Calculator
Estimate 2026 Korean livelihood benefit using household earnings deductions, regional asset allowances, accepted debt and monthly conversion; save a review for the local office.
Korean 2026 rules · ordinary households outside facilities · monthly KRW
This is an estimate for application planning. Blank means unknown; zero means none. Confirm household membership, deduction types and official asset values.
Rules effective 2026-01-01 · checked 2026-09-17
1. Household and monthly income per person
Enter assessable monthly earnings before tax and business income after allowed expenses. Enter assessable pensions separately; earned-income deductions do not apply to pension income.
The 200,000 + 30% category also covers eligible North Korean settlers and school pupils aged 35+. Use only the most favorable applicable deduction. Special cases use a provisional 30% deduction and withhold the payment estimate.
2. Assets and accepted deductions
The KRW 5,000,000 financial allowance is automatic. Basic allowance and accepted debt offset residential, general, then financial assets. Ordinary bills, loan interest and living costs are not automatically deductible. Select special review below for other financial or asset exemptions.
An unknown vehicle uses a provisional monthly 100% rate and payment stays pending. Multiple vehicles, partial reductions and mixed classifications need special review.
3. Checks before applying
Check separately living first-degree relatives and their spouses: annual income exceeding KRW 130,000,000 or assets exceeding KRW 1,200,000,000 may exclude support. Family breakdown and related exceptions require official review.
Calculation results
Complete missing values · enter 0 if none
Monthly payment estimate rounded up to KRW 10
Pending confirmation
The authority determines eligibility, work conditions and payment offsets.
Why salary alone does not determine livelihood benefit
This calculator estimates recognized income and monthly livelihood benefit under Korean 2026 rules for ordinary households living outside benefit facilities.
It is useful after retirement, reduced work or a business slowdown, including when an adult child helps a parent prepare an application.
Cash income and recognized income differ: earnings may qualify for deductions, while property and savings can generate an assessed monthly amount even without cash receipts.
Enter income for each household member, apply the relevant deduction, then review regional asset allowances and accepted debt.
The result separates the unrounded benefit gap from the estimated payment rounded up to the next KRW 10.
Korean Basic Pension is a different program for older people.
Its income deductions and annual asset conversion rules must not be substituted into this livelihood-benefit calculation.
This page does not determine eligibility in another country.
2026 thresholds by household size
The livelihood-benefit threshold is 32% of the Korean standard median income in 2026.
It is the starting point for the benefit calculation, not a flat payment to every applicant.
| Benefit household size | Monthly threshold (KRW) |
|---|---|
| 1 people | 820,556 |
| 2 people | 1,343,773 |
| 3 people | 1,714,892 |
| 4 people | 2,078,316 |
| 5 people | 2,418,150 |
| 6 people | 2,737,905 |
| 7 people | 3,044,848 |
| 8 people | 3,351,791 |
The seven-person threshold is KRW 3,044,848.
Add KRW 306,943 for each additional person; eight people therefore use KRW 3,351,791.
The interface supports one to ten people as a product limit.
A registered address list is not always the same as the benefit household.
Separately living spouses, children, household separation and facility residence may require assessment.
Confirm membership before selecting the number of people.
Income and deductions for each person
Standard earnings and business income
The standard deduction is 30% of assessable earnings and business income.
With monthly earnings of KRW 1,000,000 and no other income, the assessed earned amount is KRW 700,000.
Business income means the assessable amount after allowed expenses, not gross sales.
Confirm the relevant reporting period and treatment of losses before entering a monthly amount.
Age 34 or younger, or university student
Deduct KRW 600,000 from that person’s combined earnings and business income, then deduct 30% of the remainder.
KRW 1,000,000 therefore contributes KRW 280,000 to assessed income.
The age rule can change in the month of the 35th birthday; university-student status also requires confirmation.
A person with both employment and business income gets the fixed allowance once, not once for each income source.
Age 65+, registered disability and related categories
Eligible people aged 65+, registered disabled people, North Korean settlers and school pupils aged 35+ use KRW 200,000 followed by a 30% deduction from the remainder.
KRW 1,000,000 then contributes KRW 560,000.
Vocational rehabilitation and other special deductions require separate review.
If more than one deduction applies, use the most favorable applicable one rather than adding deductions together.
Special selection provisionally uses 30% and withholds the payment estimate.
Pensions, other income and accepted expenses
Enter assessable National Pension and Basic Pension payments separately.
Earned-income deductions do not apply to pension, property or transfer income.
Do not place these amounts in the earnings field.
The accepted expense field is only for officially deductible items already included in entered income.
Do not deduct benefits already excluded from income, ordinary living costs or loan interest a second time.
Regional basic allowances and residential caps
| Region | Basic allowance (KRW) | Residential cap (KRW) |
|---|---|---|
| Seoul | 99,000,000 | 172,000,000 |
| Gyeonggi | 80,000,000 | 151,000,000 |
| Metropolitan cities / Sejong / Changwon | 77,000,000 | 146,000,000 |
| Other regions | 53,000,000 | 112,000,000 |
For an owned home, enter the official assessable value rather than an advertised market price.
For a rented home, enter the contractual housing deposit; the calculator applies 95%.
Do not enter an amount that has already been reduced to 95%.
The residential cap is a classification limit, not an additional deduction.
Value up to the cap uses the residential rate; excess value moves into general assets before allowances are applied.
Other homes and land generally belong in the separate general-assets field.
Avoid entering the same property twice.
Enter financial assets before the KRW 5,000,000 household financial allowance.
Assessable insurance and securities can matter alongside bank balances.
Extra financial exemptions and asset exceptions require special review.
How the calculation works
- Apply each person’s earned-income deduction, add pension and other assessable income, then subtract confirmed household expense deductions.
Assessed income cannot be negative. - Split the assessed primary-home value at the regional residential cap.
Add confirmed general-rate vehicles to general assets.
Deduct the KRW 5,000,000 financial allowance from financial assets only. - Apply the regional basic allowance in residential → general → financial order.
Apply accepted debt in the same order, carrying only the unused portion forward. - Multiply remaining residential assets by monthly 1.04%, general assets by monthly 4.17% and financial assets by monthly 6.26%.
Add vehicles subject to monthly 100%.
These are monthly rates: do not divide by 12. - Recognized income = assessed income + monthly converted assets.
Benefit gap = max(0, household threshold − recognized income).
Excess = max(0, recognized income − threshold). - The 2026 manual, printed page 238, requires payment in KRW 10 units rounded upward.
A gap of KRW 670,556 becomes an estimated payment of KRW 670,560.
Intermediate comparisons preserve fractions; displayed amounts use up to four decimal places.
Unused allowances and debt cannot offset a 100%-rate vehicle.
Select excluded or general-rate treatment only when that classification has been confirmed.
Multiple vehicles, mixed classifications and partial exemptions need special review.
Worked examples
One person earning KRW 1,000,000
With the standard 30% deduction and no converted assets, recognized income is KRW 700,000.
The KRW 820,556 threshold leaves a gap of KRW 120,556 and an estimated payment of KRW 120,560.
With otherwise identical facts, the youth deduction gives an estimated KRW 540,560; the older-person deduction gives KRW 260,560.
These are fictional comparisons assuming other conditions are met, not awards based solely on age.
Two-person household in Seoul
Assume earnings of KRW 1,000,000, an owned home assessed at KRW 120,000,000, financial assets of KRW 10,000,000 and accepted debt of KRW 10,000,000.
All other income, assets, vehicles and expense deductions are zero.
The KRW 99,000,000 basic allowance and KRW 10,000,000 debt leave KRW 11,000,000 of residential assets, converted to KRW 114,400 monthly.
Financial assets after the allowance are KRW 5,000,000, converted to KRW 313,000.
Converted assets total KRW 427,400.
Adding assessed income of KRW 700,000 gives recognized income of KRW 1,127,400.
Against the two-person threshold of KRW 1,343,773, the gap is KRW 216,373 and the estimated rounded payment is KRW 216,380.
From entering data to an application discussion
- Confirm the benefit household and residence region for the relevant month.
If helping a family member, check that everyone’s income evidence refers to the applicable assessment period. - Separate earnings, business income, pensions and other income.
Use payslips, pension statements and business records.
Enter zero only when the item is actually absent. - Prepare the lease or official home valuation, financial records and outstanding-debt certificates.
Credit-card bills and private loans are not automatically accepted debt. - Confirm the official vehicle value and category.
Engine size or age alone does not prove exemption; ask about the complete conditions. - Review the individual deductions and asset offsets, then save the TXT report.
Pending classifications remain in the report so they can be discussed with the local office. - Apply or seek advice at the address-based eup, myeon or dong administrative welfare center, or call Korea’s health and welfare counseling number 129.
Before abandoning an application because an estimate is slightly high, confirm the deductions and assessable records.
Reading the result states
Within the income limit, including zero payment
Being within the entered income limit is only a numerical comparison.
Family-support exceptions, work capacity, self-support participation and other benefit requirements still need official assessment.
When recognized income exactly equals the threshold, the income test is within the limit but the benefit gap and payment estimate are zero.
This does not determine eligibility for other benefits.
Above the limit or pending confirmation
The excess amount shows the difference for a consultation.
It is not an instruction to dispose of assets or omit income; property disposals may themselves remain assessable.
Unknown vehicle or deduction classifications retain provisional arithmetic but withhold the payment estimate.
Missing numbers are not treated as zero, and invalid numbers suppress totals.
Retirement, a child’s new job and a move
Retiring into pension income
Earnings may fall while pension income continues to count.
Review pension payments, other transfers and other household members rather than merely deleting the former salary.
Changes may reach official assessment records with a delay.
A change in this calculator does not mean an immediate change in an actual payment.
Compare periods and confirm the reporting requirements.
A young adult starts work, or the household relocates
Check whether the young person belongs to the benefit household before applying the KRW 600,000 plus 30% deduction.
A different registered address does not by itself settle household membership.
When comparing a move, change the region, deposit and eligible debt together.
Basic allowances and residential caps vary by region.
Confirm official assessed values and accepted debt before relying on the estimate for a housing commitment.
Limits and important checks
- Separately living first-degree relatives and their spouses can trigger an exception when annual income exceeds KRW 130,000,000 or assets exceed KRW 1,200,000,000.
Family breakdown and other exceptions require review; the calculator does not issue a final rejection from this fact alone. - Facility benefits, individual protection, asset exceptions for households unable to work, vocational-rehabilitation deductions, extra financial savings deductions and special treatment of disposed or gifted property are outside the ordinary model.
Select special review when these apply or remain uncertain. - Vehicle exemption eligibility, multiple vehicles and partial reductions are not automatically determined.
Unknown classification provisionally uses monthly 100%, which may materially overstate recognized income. - Income and asset changes can enter official records at different times.
Recovery, offsets, failure to satisfy conditions, retroactive payments and the actual bank deposit for a month require separate confirmation. - Confirm the most favorable applicable deduction rather than selecting one simply because it raises the estimate.
Watch for duplicate deductions of benefits, ordinary expenses and the same debt.
Frequently asked questions
Does salary above the threshold prevent an application?
Not necessarily.
Compare assessed income after applicable standard, youth or older-person deductions.
Converted assets and income of other household members must also be included.
Should I include Basic Pension payments?
Enter assessable Basic Pension and National Pension payments in the pension field.
Earned-income deductions do not apply, and the two benefit programs use different asset calculations.
Are the first KRW 5,000,000 of savings always ignored?
The ordinary model deducts the household financial allowance from financial assets.
Remaining basic allowance and debt may also offset the balance.
This does not make the same amount deductible from monthly income or every asset type.
Can I simply subtract my mortgage from the house price?
Use official assessed values, the residential classification cap, the basic allowance and accepted debt in order.
Not every loan qualifies; evidence of the debt and its use may be required.
Does owning a car automatically disqualify me?
Some vehicles may be excluded or assessed at the general-asset rate depending on their use and the household’s circumstances.
The calculator does not decide these conditions.
Enter the classification confirmed by the office.
Why can the estimated payment slightly exceed the threshold?
The manual requires rounding payment upward to KRW 10.
For example, a one-person household with zero recognized income has a KRW 820,556 starting amount and a KRW 820,560 rounded estimate.
The eligibility threshold itself has not changed.
What happens to blanks or unconfirmed items?
A missing number prevents totals.
If only household or classification checks remain, provisional arithmetic may be available but payment stays pending.
The saved report identifies these outstanding checks.
Is the saved report an official award?
No.
It is a consultation aid, not an application form or decision notice.
The local office investigates the household, income and assets, family-support exceptions and work conditions before deciding support.
Official sources and next steps
Sources were checked on 2026-09-17 through the National Law Information OPEN API.
National Basic Living Security Act Articles 6-3 and 8 use MST276653, effective 2025-10-01.
Enforcement Decree Articles 5-2 through 5-4 use MST281585, effective 2026-01-02.
Benefit thresholds use Notice 2025-135 (2100000262584); basic assets and vehicle classification use Notice 2025-204 (2100000269244), both effective 2026-01-01.
Conversion rates use Notice 2019-188 (2100000181823), effective 2019-09-01, cross-checked against the 2026 manual.
The manual’s printed pages 105–106 cover income deductions, 140 rental deposits, 148 the financial allowance, 163–166 debt and asset conversion, and 238–239 payment and upward rounding.
Future rules effective 2027-01-01 and the roadmap’s 2028 planning date are not used.
- MOHW selection criteria
- MOHW income and asset assessment
- Official copy of the MOHW 2026 manual
- National Basic Living Security Act Article 6-3
- Enforcement Decree Article 5-4
- 2026 threshold notice
- Basic assets and vehicle notice
- Asset conversion rate notice
Prepare a report for the local office
Recheck the inputs, save the TXT report and gather income evidence, housing records, financial statements and accepted-debt documents.
Mark uncertain classifications and deductions so the consultation can address them directly.
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