Work & pay
Korea plans to pay jobseeker's allowance for six days a week instead of seven — same total, smaller monthly payments
On 1 September 2026 the Ministry of Employment and Labor reviewed its Employment Insurance Reform Plan at the Employment Insurance Committee. Jobseeker's allowance would be calculated on six days per week, excluding the unpaid rest day; the upper limit would be pegged at 103% of the lower limit; and the income threshold that disqualifies you from the early re-employment allowance would drop from 5.74 million to 3 million won per month. The total amount and the total number of payment days (120-270) stay the same, so the same money is spread over a longer calendar period. Legislation is still pending, so no effective date has been set.
What changes
A week would count as six days rather than seven when the allowance is calculated, with one unpaid rest day removed. The ministry's stated reason is a mismatch: when the scheme began in 1995 a six-day work week was standard, so wages and the allowance both used a seven-day basis. After the five-day week arrived in 2004 the two never realigned, and people earning close to the minimum wage could end up receiving more on benefits than in work. The Board of Audit and Inspection flagged this in October 2025.
The total payout and the total number of covered days are unchanged — the statutory range of 120 to 270 days stays as it is. Only the daily calculation changes, so the monthly deposit shrinks while coverage stretches across more calendar months. This is not a cut to the total; it spreads the same amount over a longer period.
The upper limit would no longer be a fixed figure. It would be pegged to the lower limit at 103%. Because the lower limit tracks the minimum wage, it had been catching up with and even overtaking the ceiling; the 103% ratio reflects the 3.1% gap observed in 2026.
The early re-employment allowance would be denied to more people. Today you are excluded only if your new job pays 5.74 million won a month or more; the threshold would fall to 3 million won. The stated aim is to stop paying a bonus to people who would have found work quickly anyway. In exchange, dedicated counsellors and tailored job-search support are to be strengthened for those who need them.
The contribution rate for the unemployment benefit account rises from 1.8% to 2.0%, with employees and employers each adding 0.1 percentage point in 2027. Announced alongside it: a new account provisionally called Work-Family Balance, to be created in 2028 to carry parental leave benefits, plus larger government transfers (0.9 trillion won from the general account in 2027).
Who this applies to
- Anyone who will claim unemployment benefit in future. How the change applies to people already receiving payments will be set out in the transitional provisions of the amended act, which do not exist yet.
- Those earning near the minimum wage feel it most, because they receive the lower-limit amount and the six-day calculation applies in full.
- Claimants planning a quick return to work. If the new job pays more than 3 million won a month, the early re-employment allowance would no longer be available.
- Foreign workers enrolled in employment insurance are treated identically. If you held a work-eligible status such as E-9 or H-2 and were enrolled, the eligibility rules and the calculation are the same as for Korean nationals.
- Employers face a 0.1 percentage point increase in their employment insurance contribution from 2027, which changes total payroll cost.
- Four occupation groups including insurance planners and after-school instructors come under expanded employment insurance coverage from January 2027.
What to do now
- 1If you are claiming now or about to claim, there is no need to rush. The law has not changed, so current claims are processed on the existing seven-day basis. Ask your employment centre if you are unsure.
- 2Run your expected amount through the unemployment benefit calculator under the current rules. That gives you a baseline to compare against once the reform takes effect.
- 3If you are timing a return to work, check the early re-employment allowance threshold. A new job paying over 3 million won a month would fall outside it after the change.
- 4Employers should build the 0.1 percentage point rate increase into 2027 payroll planning. The four-insurance calculator will give you the revised employer total.
- 5Confirm the final rules from the ministry's own announcements and the amended Employment Insurance Act, not from news summaries — pre-legislation proposals and enacted rules are easily conflated.
Commonly misunderstood
- This is not in force. As of 1 September 2026 the government had reviewed and prepared the plan; it said it would support parliamentary passage of the act and related decrees within the year. Content may change during that process.
- Figures such as '1.98m won a month becoming 1.76m' come from press calculations under specific assumptions (lower-limit recipient, 150 days). They are not amounts stated in the ministry's release, and your own figure depends on your wage, your entitlement days and when the change takes effect.
- The total is not being cut. The same total is paid across a longer period. 'Benefits are being reduced' is only true on a monthly view.
- The rate increase (1.8% to 2.0%) is a subordinate-decree matter while the six-day payment change requires amending the act. The two may take effect at different times.
Official sources
The links below are official government publications. This page summarises them; always check the original before filing or applying.
Verified on: 2026-09-09
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- Korea's 2027 minimum wage set at 10,700 won per hour, effective 1 January 2027
- New right to take annual leave in hourly units from 10 June 2027; break-time choice for four-hour shifts from 10 December 2026
- K-Pass adds a flat-rate 'Modu Card' — from January 2026 the system picks whichever refund is larger
- Korea scraps 'deemed family support' after 26 years — Medical Aid became easier to qualify for in January 2026
This page explains a policy change and is not legal advice. Confirm how it applies to your situation with the responsible agency.