Korean Job Discussion Forums

re:cursive · Joined: 04 Jan 2006

I need to get medical insurance ASAP, preferably before next Friday. After searching through the FAQ's I've come to understand that this may cost a bit because of me having to backpay for the time I wasn't covered and all that...I'm prepared to do this. It also seemed to me that I'd be looking at around 50,000 Won per month.

This is where it gets a bit strange....I asked the director of my school to organise the 50/50 medical insurance scheme for me for as stated in my contract. He made some calls and reported back to me that in order to qualify for medical insurance I have to first make payments into the Korean pension scheme which is calculated as 12% of my wages so for me earning 2 million that's about 240,000 Won. Apparently then I am able to get medical insurance which costs an additional 80,000 Won per month. This is all halved with the 50/50 thing but...

240,000 + 80,000 = 320,000

divided by 2 = 160,000 Won per month.

This is a whole lot more than I was expecting and makes no sense to me....why am I required to make contributions into a pension scheme that as a foreigner I have no entitlements to ever access? Apparently I get some of my contributions into the pension scheme back when I leave the country but not all of it (they could give me no indication of how much I would lose).

I've never heard of this before. I'm going to try to contact the National Insurance people myself but it would helpful to get a bit of advice first.

Can someone please clarify this for me?

cdninkorea · Joined: 27 Jan 2006 Location: Seoul

That's about what I pay too. Good luck with the health insurance (I've been waiting three months now).

The pension, I believe, is fully refundable when you leave the country (I think you get your employer's contributions as well, but I'm not sure)

alabamaman · Joined: 25 Apr 2006

http://www.nhic.or.kr/wbe/faq/faq_con.html

ttompatz · Joined: 05 Sep 2005 Location: Kwangju, South Korea

happeningthang · Joined: 26 Apr 2003

Kim Jong Jordan · Joined: 13 Mar 2004 Location: The Internet

I work for the Incheon school board so everything is done by the book in regards to taxes, pension, etc. I make 2 mil and I pay something like 44 000 a month for health care and 88 000 for pension. Fact.

ttompatz · Joined: 05 Sep 2005 Location: Kwangju, South Korea

happeningthang · Joined: 26 Apr 2003

stumptown · Posted: Wed May 31, 2006 6:22 pm Post subject:

seoulkitchen · Joined: 28 Dec 2004 Location: Hub of Asia, my ass!

So, how do you get the pension back?

What if you've changed jobs but didn't collect when you left the first time, will you get that back as well?

SuperFly · Joined: 09 Jul 2003 Location: In the doghouse

denverdeath · Joined: 21 May 2005 Location: Boo-sahn

re:cursive, if you add about 30,000 for income and resident's tax onto the numbers that ttompatz mentioned, you get about 160,000won, yes? 160,000won deductions for 2mil sounds about right. Just make sure that you get your health card and verify with the pension office that your boss is contributing both your and his amts.

re:cursive · Joined: 04 Jan 2006

Thanks for the responses. They have definately helped.

Here's an update of what I've found out. It seems like I'm getting a relatively cheap deal all things considered.

A Korean colleague at my work offered to call both the national medical insurance office and also the national pension office for me today. Here's what they told her....Yes it is true that I have to pay money into the pension scheme in order to qualify for medical insurance. The amount paid into the pension is 9% of my wages, which is meant to be split between myself and the boss. So for a 2 million wage, after the split, it should work out at 90,000. I found out today that by the books I am officially earning less than I actually am so it will work out at only 60,000 won. I'm not quite sure how I feel about this.

The medical insurance is apparently calculated in various ranges depending on income and for me it works out that my half is 30,000.

It seems like the figures ttompatz provided are correct, but due to a bit of creative accounting it looks like I'll be paying 90,000 won per month instead of the 134,800.

Unfortunately the refund of the pension is totally dependent on the country you come from and the agreements they have with Korea (This info was found in the links provided by Superfly and confirmed by the Pension office). I'm an Australian which means I get none of it back. The seems slightly unjust to me. Equally so for the Koreans in Australia that have to do the same thing.

The boss has told me that if I bring in all the required documents tomorrow he will drive to the office and personally get it all organised for me and I should be covered immediately. I'm hoping this is true.