Subscription as Self-employed Insured and Eligibility Maintenance
Entitlement to Subscribe as Self-employed Insured
- All subscribers other than employee insured and their dependents will be classified as self-employed insured (Article 6 (3) of the “National Health Insurance Act”).
※ For further details on the “employee insured” and “their dependents”, please see the content on the 『National health insurance (Employee Insured)』 on this website.
Entitlement as self-employed insured of foreign nationals residing in Korea
- Overseas Korean nationals or foreign nationals who are not subscribed as employee insured (hereinafter referred to as the “foreign nationals, etc. residing in Korea”) will become the self-employed insured if they satisfy all of the following requirements (Article 109 (2) and (3) of the “National Health Insurance Act” and Article 61-2 (1) and (2) of the “Enforcement Rule of the National Health Insurance Act”).
· A person must fall under any of the following categories if he/she has stayed in Korea for six months or longer or he/she is expected to continuously stay in Korea for six months or longer:
√ If a person has acquired a visa for marriage to Korean citizen (F-6)
√ If a person is staying in Korea to study or conduct research eligible to receive a vise for students (D-2) [limited to overseas Korean nationals, students of foreign nationality whose visa is for students (D-2) or overseas Korean (F-4)]
√ If a person is staying in Korea to study at school [limited to overseas Korean nationals or students of foreign nationality whose visa is for general trainees (D-4) or overseas Korean (D-4)]
· A person must fall under any of the following categories:
√ An overseas Korean national who has registered under Article 6 (1) 3 of the “Resident Registration Act”
√ A person of Korean heritage with foreign nationality who has entered Korea with the status as an overseas Korean and registered to reside in Korea
√ A person who has registered as a foreign national under Article 31 of the “Immigration Act” whose status of stay falls under attached Table 9 of the “Enforcement Rule of the National Health Insurance Act”
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Status of stay (symbol) under attached Table 9 of the “Enforcement Rule of the National Health Insurance Act”
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1. Artist (D-1), students (D-2), industrial trainee (D-3), general trainee (D-4), journalism (D-5), religion (D-6), intra-company transfer (D-7), corporate investor (D-8), international trade (D-9), job seeking (D-10) 2. Professor (E-1), foreign language instructor (E-2), research (E-3), technology transfer (E-4), professional employment (E-5), artistic performer (E-6), designated activities (E-7), , non-professional employment (E-9), crew employee (E-10) 3. Visiting or joining family (F-1), resident (F-2), accompanying spouse/child (F-3), overseas Korean (F-4), permanent resident (F-5), marriage to Korean citizen (F-6) 4. Miscellaneous (G-1) (limited to those who have obtained permission to stay for humanitarian reasons under the Refugee Act and those set out by the NHIS) 5. Working holiday (H-1), working visit (H-2)
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※ Six months as the period of stay in Korea will be calculated under the following standards. In this case, any period spent outside of Korea not exceeding 30 days in total during the period of six months from the initial date will be considered as the period spent in Korea.
1. The period begins from the day on which the person first entered Korea (if a person who has left Korea once after his/her initial entry into Korea and stayed outside Korea for 30 days or longer returns to Korea, the date of his/her re-entry will be considered as the date of his/her initial entry).
2. Notwithstanding the above provision, if a person, who has left Korea on two or more occasions and stayed outside of Korea (only if a person stayed outside Korea for 30 days or less at each time of his/her departure) for 30 days or longer in total during the period of six months added from the initial date of his/her entry, returns to Korea, the period will begin to be added from the first day of each month after the month following that under which the date of initial entry falls (if the date of initial entry is the first day of each month, then the applicable month) (limited to cases where the period is added from the first day of each month and the period spent outside of Korea during six months does not exceed 30 days in total).
- However, foreign nationals, etc. residing in Korea who fall under any of the following categories will not be eligible to subscribe to national health insurance (Article 109 (5) of the “National Health Insurance Act” and Article 76 of the “Enforcement Decree of the National Health Insurance Act”):
· If the person's stay in Korea violates any laws and regulations and if a foreign national or a foreign national of Korean heritage stays in Korea without obtaining permission to extend his/her stay
· If the person’s stay in Korea violates any laws and regulations and if he/she has been issued with a written order of deportation under Article 59 (3) of “the Immigration Act”
· If a foreign national, etc. residing in Korea is eligible to the health coverage equivalent to the health care benefits under Article 41 of the “National Health Insurance Act” due to insurance signed outside of Korea or an agreement with his/her employer
※ Further details on the “exclusion of subscription to national health insurance by foreign nationals, etc. residing in Korea” are available on the 『National health insurance (Self-employed insured)』 <Subscription to health insurance - Subscription as self-employed insured and eligibility maintenance - Modification and loss of eligibility>.
Acquisition of the eligibility as self-employed insured
When to obtain the eligibility as self-employed insured
- A self-employed insured will obtain the eligibility as a self-employed insured on the day he/she begins to reside in Korea. However, any of the following persons will obtain the eligibility on the respective applicable day (Article 8 (1) of the “National Health Insurance Act”):
· A person who has been eligible to receive health care benefits under the “Medical Care Assistance Act”: on the day when he/she becomes excluded from such eligibility
· Dependents of employee insured (refer to lineal ascendants and descendants; the same will apply hereafter): on the day when he/she loses his/her eligibility
- Foreign nationals, etc. residing in Korea will obtain the eligibility as self-employed insured on any of the following days (proviso to Article 109 (6) of the “National Health Insurance Act”, Article 76-2 (1) of the “Enforcement Decree of the National Health Insurance Act”, and Article 4 (1) of the “Application Standards for Overseas Korean Nationals and Foreign Nationals who Stay in Korea for a Long Period of Time”):
√ If an overseas Korean national who has registered under Article 6 (1) 3 of the “Resident Registration Act”, a foreign national of Korean heritage who has entered Korea with the status as an overseas Korean and registered to reside in Korea, or a person who has registered under Article 31 of the “Immigration Act” and is qualified to stay under attached Table 9 of the “Enforcement Rule of the National Health Insurance Act” has stayed in Korea for six months or longer: on the day immediately following the last day of six months [however, if a person is staying in Korea on the day immediately following the last day of six months (limited to the case in which the period of stay in Korea does not exceed 30 days), the day he/she entered Korea]
√ If an overseas Korean national who has registered under Article 6 (1) 3 of the “Resident Registration Act”, a foreign national of Korean heritage who has entered Korea with the status as an overseas Korean and registered to reside in Korea, or a person who has registered under Article 31 of the “Immigration Act” and is qualified to stay under attached Table 9 of the “Enforcement Rule of the National Health Insurance Act” is expected to stay in Korea for six months or longer: on the day he/she entered Korea
√ If an overseas Korean national or a foreign national whose period of stay has not terminated stays outside of Korea for one month or longer and loses his/her eligibility, and then returns to Korea within six months of his/her departure, and if he/she has paid premiums estimated in consideration of the period of stay outside Korea: on the day he/she entered Korea
√ If a person whose period of stay has terminated and lost his/her eligibility receives another status of stay without departing Korea after the termination of the period of stay: on the day he/she received the status of stay
√ If the period excluded from subscription has ended: on the day immediately following the day of termination (however, if a person who had been excluded because he/she had been entitled to receive medical security equivalent to health care benefits under foreign laws and regulations has applied to acquire the eligibility during the period he/she remains eligible for the said medical security, then on the day of application)
√ If a person has lost his/her eligibility as a dependent of an employee insured: on the day he/she lost his/her eligibility
√ If a person is born in Korea and has a father or mother who is an overseas Korean national or foreign national and is eligible to subscribe as a self-employed insured before the baby’s birth: on the date of birth
Report on acquisition of the eligibility as self-employed insured
- If a member of a household becomes eligible to subscribe as a self-employed insured, the head of the household of the relevant self-employed insured must submit the following documents to the National Health Insurance Service (hereinafter referred to as the “Service”) within 14 days from when he/she became eligible (Article 8 (2) of the “National Health Insurance Act” and proviso to Article 4 (1) of the “Enforcement Rule of the National Health Insurance Act”):
· A report on the acquisition or modification of the eligibility as self-employed insured (attached Form No. 5 of the “Enforcement Rule of the National Health Insurance Act”)
· Documentary evidence for the reduction of premiums (applicable to only those who are subject to exemption or partial reduction of premiums under Articles 74 and 75 of the “National Health Insurance Act”)
- If foreign nationals, etc. residing in Korea become self-employed insured, they must submit a declaration of acquisition of eligibility as self-employed insured for health insurance accompanied by the following documents to the National Health Insurance Service (main text of the part excluding each subparagraph under Article 61-2 (3) and subparagraphs 1 and 2 of the “Enforcement Rule of the National Health Insurance Act”).
· Overseas Korean nationals: A copy of each document under attached Table 1 of the “Application Standards for Overseas Korean Nationals and Foreign Nationals who Stay in Korea for a Long Period of Time” such as a certified copy of his/her resident registration card and an income statement required for the imposition of premiums
· Foreign nationals of Korean heritage: A copy of each document under attached Table 1 of the “Application Standards for Overseas Korean Nationals and Foreign Nationals who Stay in Korea for a Long Period of Time” such as a copy of his/her resident card and a copy of the certificate of domestic residence report
· Other foreign nationals: A copy of each document under attached Table 1 of the “Application Standards for Overseas Korean Nationals and Foreign Nationals who Stay in Korea for a Long Period of Time” such as a copy of his/her alien registration card or a copy of the certificate of alien registration
※ However, if data provided to the National Health Insurance Service from the State, etc. under Article 96 of the “National Health Insurance Act” offers the verification of resident registration, domestic resident report, alien registration and the matters necessary for imposing premiums, the confirmation of the data may be submitted in lieu of the documents (proviso to the part other than each subparagraph under Article 61-2 (3) of the “Enforcement Rule of the National Health Insurance Act”).