2 out of 3 Koreans believe they pay too much tax for social security benefits

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Two out of three South Koreans believe that they pay too much in taxes for the benefits they receive from social security, a survey showed on Sunday.

According to a survey conducted by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs (KIHASA) on Sunday, 43.1 percent of the respondents said that they pay “somewhat more” in taxes compared to the benefits they receive, while 23.8 percent said they pay “too much.”

When combined, 66.9 percent of respondents believe that their tax burden is greater than the benefits they receive.

With regard to social insurance contributions, 42.6 percent said they pay “somewhat too much” and 23.3 percent “too much” compared to benefits, suggesting that 65.9 percent of Koreans believe that social insurance contributions are excessive.

Only 3.2 percent and 3.7 percent of respondents believed that their tax burden and social insurance contributions were less than the benefits they receive.

When asked about their willingness to pay additional taxes or social insurance contributions if welfare benefits increased in the future, more respondents said they would not than those who said they would be willing to.

However, a significant number of respondents, regardless of their willingness to pay additional taxes or insurance premiums, felt that the current level of support for infants, elementary school students, people with disabilities, and the elderly is insufficient.

KIHASA researchers analyzed that the survey results indicate that households may not have much capacity to bear additional tax burdens, especially given recent concerns about inflationary pressures and rising interest rates. As a result, they are less willing to make additional contributions to support adequate social security spending, they said.

The KIHASA commissioned the Korea Data Research Center to conduct an online survey of 3,038 people aged between 19 and 79 from September 7 to October 4 last year.