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Work and Family Life

Target of childcare leave benefits

How to apply for childcare leave benefits

Amount of childcare benefits

Restrictions on the payment of childcare leave benefits, etc.

Target of childcare leave benefits

Requirements of childcare leave benefits

- The Minister of Employment and Labor shall pay childcare leave benefits to an insured employee whose qualifying days in covered employment under Article 41 of the Employment Insurance Act before the date child care leave begins amount to at least 180 days from among such insured employees who have been granted childcare leave for at least 30 days (excluding the period overlapping with the period of maternity leave) (Article 70(1) of the Employment Insurance Act).

How to apply for childcare leave benefits

How to apply

- Any employee who wishes to receive childcare leave benefits shall submit an application to the head of the regional employment security center closest to his/her residence or workplace (Article 70 (5) of the Employment Insurance Act, the former part and Subparagraph 1 of Article 116 (1) of the Enforcement Rule of the Employment Insurance Act).

· Application for childcare leave benefits (attached Form 100 of the Enforcement Rule of the Employment Insurance Act)

· One copy of the confirmation of childcare leave (limited to the first time) (attached Form 102 of the Enforcement Rule of the Employment Insurance Act)

· One copy of the evidentiary materials (wage ledgers, employment contracts, etc.) verifying ordinary wages

· Where money and valuables are received from the employer during the period of childcare leave, one copy of the data verifying such money and valuables

· Documents verifying pregnancy at the time when the employee applied for childcare leave (only applicable when the pregnant employee intends to be provided with childcare leave benefits)

· Where parents apply for childcare leave sequentially for the same child (Article 95-2(1) of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act), one copy of the evidence confirming that the father or mother, who is not the applicant, has taken childcare leave for the same child and a family relation certificate proving that they are two or more children

· Where the mother or father insured under subparagraph 1 of Article 4 of the Single-Parent Family Support Act applies for childcare leave benefits, one copy of a document verifying the required qualifications

- The application for childcare leave benefits shall be made on a monthly basis. The benefits for the current month shall be applied for by the end of the following month (Article 116 (2) of the Enforcement Rule of the Employment Insurance Act).

- If an employee has been transferred during the period of childcare leave or has been employed in any of the following cases when applying for the payment of childcare leave benefits, he/she shall enter such fact in the application submitted for the first time after the date of transfer or employment (Article 70 (3) of the Employment Insurance Act, Article 96 of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act, and Article 116 (3) of the Enforcement Rule of the Employment Insurance Act).

· Where the fixed working hours for 1 week are at least 15 hours

· Where the money and valuables received in return for providing income or labor through self-employment is at least KRW 1.5 million per month (proviso to Article 95(1) of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act)

Time limit for application

- A person who wishes to receive childcare leave benefits shall apply between 1 month from the start date of the childcare leave and 12 months after the end of the period of leave (the main body of Article 70 (2) of the Employment Insurance Act).

- However, those who fail to apply for childcare leave benefits during the aforementioned period for any of the following reasons shall submit an application within 30 days after the reason for such failure has ceased to exist (proviso to Article 70 (2) of the Employment Insurance Act, Article 94 of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act).

· A natural disaster

· Illness or injury of the beneficiary or his/her spouse

· Illness or injury of an ascendant or descendant of the beneficiary or his/her spouse

· Obligatory military service under the Military Service Act

· Arrest or execution of the sentence because of an alleged crime

Amount of childcare benefits

Amount paid

- The amount of monthly childcare leave benefits shall be equivalent to 80% of the monthly ordinary wage as of the start date of childcare leave. However, if the amount calculated exceeds KRW 1,500,000, the amount of benefits shall be KRW 1,500,000; and if it is less than KRW 700,000, then the amount of benefits shall be KRW 700,000 (Article 70(4) of the Employment Insurance Act and Article 95(1) of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act).

- If the childcare leave is taken by installments, the period eligible for childcare leave benefits above shall be the total number of days used (Article 95 (2) of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act).

- If the period eligible for childcare leave benefits is less than 1 month, the amount calculated in proportion to the number of days of leave in the relevant month shall be paid (Article 95(3) of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act).

Payment time

- An amount equivalent to 75% of childcare leave benefits (in any of the following cases, the amount classified as follows) shall be paid monthly (Article 95 (4) of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act).

· Where the amount equivalent to 75% of childcare leave benefits is less than the minimum amount paid above: Minimum amount paid according to the classification above

· Where the childcare leave allowance is paid according to the proportional calculation and the amount equivalent to 75% of the childcare leave allowance is less than the proportional daily calculation of the minimum payment above: Amount of the proportional daily calculation of the minimum payment according to the classification above

- The remaining amount shall be paid in a lump sum if he/she has returned to the relevant place of business after the end of childcare leave and has worked for at least 6 months (referring to cases where childcare leave is terminated for a fixed-term employee who is unable to continue to work for at least 6 months because of the expiration of the labor contract, or where he/she continues to work until the expiration date of the labor contract after returning to his/her place of business) (Article 95 (4) of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act).

※ Childcare leave bonus system

Q. I’d like to apply for childcare leave after my wife’s childcare leave. I’m worried if it’s right to use childcare leave because of the financial burden.

A. Yes. You have no choice but to use childcare leave to take care of your children, but you must be worried because childcare leave will reduce your household income.

It may not be very helpful, but we are supporting childcare leave for fathers (or mothers) under the “Childcare Leave Benefit Special Case System.”

In other words, if parents take childcare leave sequentially for the same child, the childcare leave salary for the first 3 months of the employee who took the second childcare leave is 100% of the normal monthly wage (Upper limit of KRW 2.5 million) (Article 95-2 of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act).

Restrictions on the payment of childcare leave benefits, etc.

Restrictions on payment of childcare leave benefits

- Payment of childcare leave benefits shall be discontinued from the date when an insured employee departs from employment or obtains a new job during a period in which childcare leave benefits are received (Article 73 (1) of the Employment Insurance Act).

- Those who have obtained a new job during the period of childcare leave shall be paid no childcare leave benefits during the period of such employment (Articles 73 (2) and 70 (3) of the Employment Insurance Act and Article 116 (3) of the Enforcement Rule of the Employment Insurance Act).

· Where the fixed working hours for 1 week are at least 15 hours

· Where the money and valuables received in return for providing income or labor through self-employed business is at least KRW 1.5 million (proviso to Article 95(1) of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act)

- A person who has received or intends to receive childcare leave benefits by fraud or other improper means cannot receive the benefits from the date he receives or intends to receive such benefits (the main body of 73 (4) of the Employment Insurance Act).

· However, if the employee has the requirements for childcare leave benefits after the childcare leave related to the benefits, he can receive maternity leave benefits according to the new requirement (proviso to Articles 73 (4) of the Employment Insurance Act).

- For a person who has received or intends to receive childcare leave benefits by falsely stating that he/she has been employed during the period of childcare leave, the scope of childcare leave benefits for which payment is restricted pursuant to Article 118-2 of the Enforcement Rule of the Employment Insurance Act may be determined differently in consideration of the number of violations (Article 73 (5) of the Employment Insurance Act).

Reduced benefits

- If an employee receives money or valuables from his/her employer for childcare leave, the salary will be reduced as follows (Article 73 (3) of the Employment Insurance Act, Articles 98, 95(1), 95-2(1), and 95-3(1) and (3) of the Enforcement Decree of the Employment Insurance Act).

· Until 3 months after the beginning date of the childcare leave: Where the sum of the amount equivalent to 100% of the money, valuables, and childcare leave benefits paid during the period of childcare leave on a monthly basis exceeds the monthly ordinary wage as of the start date of childcare leave, the excess amount shall be deducted from the amount equivalent to 100% of the childcare leave benefits.

· The 4th month until the end date of childcare leave: Where the sum of the amount equivalent to 75% of the money, valuables, and childcare leave benefits paid during the period of childcare leave on a monthly basis exceeds the monthly ordinary wage as of the start date of childcare leave, the excess amount shall be deducted from the amount equivalent to 75% of the childcare leave benefits. However, if it is less than the minimum amount (KRW 700,000), then the amount of benefits shall be KRW 700,000.