Publication

How Are the Burden and Protection of the National Pension Distributed?

Institute for Reform Issue Brief 2026-33 (October 16, 2026), Part 5 of the "Politics and Generations" series, asks how the contribution burden and benefits of the national pension are divided by year of birth and by conditions of coverage. In 2024, 91.2% of people aged 65 and over received at least one pension, and the median monthly benefit was 497,000 won. With the 2025 amendment, the contribution rate rises to 13% by 2033 and the nominal replacement rate for periods of coverage from 2026 onward became 43%, while no conclusion has been reached on an automatic adjustment mechanism or on how to finance benefits after fund depletion. In calculations that assume every birth cohort is covered for the same period, later-born cohorts have lower benefit-to-contribution ratios, and the level varies with the assumptions. Even within the same birth cohort, coverage and benefits differ by working conditions and sex.