Korean Job Discussion Forums

[tomstar86]

Hey folks

I have a question regarding pension.

I'm a UK citizen, and currently paying 180,000 won per month for pension. I realise that some employers pay half, but with my boss, there's not a hope in hell of that, so please, don't even go there.

However, I'm curious - do I HAVE to pay pension at all? I won't retire in Korea, and as anyone who's had to deal with UK government knows, there's not a hope in hell I'll receive this money back when I retire in the UK some 40 years from now.

What happens when leaving the country if I don't pay it. Does it flag up with immigration?

I'm trying to clear off my debt and send money back to the UK each month, but this puts a big ole' dent in the money I have remaining once I've transferred each month.

Any info would be much appreciated.

Tom

[Andyc24_uk]

Are you currently making the payments yourself, or is your boss taking it out of your paycheck? If you're going to the trouble of making repayments personally, then stop. Keep the money you're currently paying aside until you leave.

It's unlikely they'll catch you, realistically speaking, and I doubt it would be flagged up by immigration - departments rarely talk to one another here. Chances are you can just leave with the money.

IF (and it's a big if) the pension people do catch up with you and demand payment, then you can give it to them... but if they catch up with you, then they'll also want to know why your boss isn't paying his half (it's a legal requirement). So, in the worst case scenario, you'll have to pay half the amount you're currently paying, and your crooked boss will deservedly get a bunch of trouble from the Pension office.

If your boss is taking it out of the paycheck, then talk to him and ask if it's possible to not pay it at all. Clearly he doesn't care about the law, so he might be amenable to just ignoring it altogether. But again, keep that extra money aside until you come to leave, just in case you're chased for it - if you are, you can pay (but again, they'll be asking questions of your boss, too...) and if they don't chase you, then that's a nice 2.3million plus a bit of interest you'll have saved up over the year which you can pay back on your loan when you go home.

[Hotpants]

Call me suspicious, but from how you hint at things, if I were you, I'd double check the records with the pension office to see how much money was/has been paid in by your boss so far, since I assume he is 'taking care' of all payments for you. Funny if the balance were to show up as zero ...