Seniors living alone can receive a basic pension if their monthly income is 2.13 million won or less

Elderly people wait to receive a delivery job near Dongdaemun General Market in Jongno-gu, Seoul. / Reporter Kwon Do-hyun

Seniors aged 65 and older who live alone will be able to receive a basic pension if their monthly income is 2.13 million won or less from the new year. The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on January 1 that it will set the standard for selecting the basic pension for 2024 at 2.13 million won for single households and 3.48 million won for married couples. This year's selection standard increased 5.4 percent for both single and married households from last year's 2.02 million won for singles and 3.23 million won for married couples.

The basic pension selection standard is decided by the government in December every year and applied the following year in consideration of income, property level, living conditions, and inflation so that 70 percent of the 65-year-old people receive basic pension. The income recognition amount is the sum of income, such as earned income and pension income, as well as general property, financial property, and debt.

When converting property into income, high-end memberships, including golf, horseback riding, condominiums, and luxury cars with a displacement of more than 3,000 cubic centimeters or a vehicle value of more than 40 million won, which are classified as luxury goods, will be reflected as income in full. This year, the ministry will abolish the standard of displacement from the standard of luxury cars this year.

According to the new year's budget, basic pension benefits will rise to 334,000 won per month. To receive the basic pension, pensioners must apply for it. They can apply for the basic income by visiting administrative and welfare centers and the branches of the National Pension Service, or at the website of the Ministry of Health and Welfare (www.bokjiro.go.kr ).

A person who turns 65 in 2024 and applies for a basic pension for the first time can apply for it one month before the month in which his or her birthday belongs. For example, a person whose birthday is in April 1959 can apply for a basic pension from March 1 and will receive the pension benefit from April.

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.