“Pay 80,000 won a month and get 13 million won back” ... Applicants flock to “this pension,” the first of its kind nationwide

[Financial News] The South Gyeongsang Residents’ Pension, which returns more than 13 million won after 10 years of contributions of 80,000 won a month, is drawing interest. Analysts say that interest fully reflects the retirement anxieties felt by people in their 40s and 50s.
According to South Gyeongsang Province on the 12th, 29,256 people ultimately enrolled in the South Gyeongsang Residents’ Pension, launched this year as the first program of its kind nationwide. That is 97.5% of the 30,000 places available.
The first round of enrollment closed early after reaching its target of 10,000 within three days of opening for applications. In a second round, which raised the target to 20,000, 20,589 people applied in just six days.
Some 102,000 people hoping to enroll accessed the residents’ pension website, causing the server to temporarily go down.
The South Gyeongsang Residents’ Pension was designed around an Individual Retirement Pension (IRP) to bridge the period of lost income after retirement and before people begin receiving public pension benefits, including those from the National Pension Service (NPS). When monthly contributions are at least 80,000 won, the province provides 20,000 won for every 80,000 won contributed, paying up to 240,000 won a year, or a total of 2.4 million won over 10 years, as a lump sum. With the principal contributed by the enrollee over 10 years and investment returns added, the amount received after age 60 exceeds 13 million won.
Residents of South Gyeongsang Province aged 40 or older but under 55 are eligible to enroll if they have employment or business income and an annual income of no more than 93.52 million won.
South Gyeongsang Province said the first enrollment round had confirmed that concerns about an income gap among people in their 40s and 50s were more serious than expected. It also said it was drawing up next year’s program plan.


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