National Pension Couple Beneficiaries Approach 800,000 Pairs

[Financial News] It has been found that the number of couple beneficiaries of the National Pension is approaching 800,000 pairs. The maximum monthly combined amount for couples was surveyed to be 5,430,000 KRW.
According to the National Pension Service on the 29th, the number of couple beneficiaries of the old-age pension has been steadily increasing.
It increased from 355,000 pairs at the end of 2019 to 783,000 pairs at the end of 2024. The number of couple beneficiaries has more than doubled in five years. As of the end of January this year, there were 792,015 pairs.
Along with the increase in couple beneficiaries, the average monthly combined pension amount they receive has also been increasing year by year, reaching 1,110,000 KRW as of the end of January.
There was also a case where the maximum amount of 5,430,000 KRW per month was received based on the couple's combined income (2,600,000 KRW for the husband and 2,830,000 KRW for the wife).
High-income National Pension beneficiaries among couples are mostly long-term subscribers who paid premiums from the early days of the system, which was implemented in 1988 when the income replacement rate was relatively high.
The National Pension allows both spouses to receive their respective pensions until death if they each pay premiums for at least 10 years.
If one of the couple beneficiaries dies first, the surviving spouse must choose between their own old-age pension and the survivor's pension left by the deceased spouse. If the survivor's pension is much higher than their own old-age pension, they will only receive the survivor's pension and not their own. However, if they choose their own old-age pension, they can receive an additional 30% of the survivor's pension.


mirror@fnnews.com Kim Kyuseong Reporter