South Korea elderly income shifts from family support to public pensions

South Korea is experiencing a structural shift in elderly livelihood support, moving from reliance on family allowances to public pension systems. According to reports from the National Pension Research Institute, the annual income of Koreans aged 66 and older rose by 79.2% between 2013 and 2023, increasing from approximately 7.75 million won to 13.88 million won.

Public pensions, including the National Pension and Basic Pension, now account for 28.2% of elderly income, up from 16.5% a decade ago. Conversely, private transfers from children and relatives have dropped from 20.9% to 12.1% of total income. The number of seniors receiving both the National and Basic pensions has nearly doubled, rising from 12.8% to 23.5%.

Despite the overall increase in income, significant disparities persist. There is a three-fold income gap between those receiving only the National Pension (averaging 26.48 million won annually) and those receiving only the Basic Pension (averaging 8.41 million won). Furthermore, government statistics indicate that half of all pension recipients aged 65 and over receive less than 500,000 won (approximately $360) per month, highlighting ongoing challenges regarding elderly poverty and the adequacy of current benefit levels.