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  • P-ISSN 2586-2995
  • E-ISSN 2586-4130
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KDI Journal of Economic Policy. Vol. 47, No. 1, February 2025, pp. 95-134

https://doi.org/10.23895/kdijep.2025.47.1.95

× KDI Open Access is a program of fully open access journals to facilitate the widest possible dissemination of high-quality research. All research articles published in KDI JEP are immediately, permanently and freely available online for everyone to read, download and share in terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Financial Projection of the Basic Pension under Selective Eligibility Criteria†

DOHUN KIM

Author & Article History

Manuscript received 30 August 2024; revision received 10 September 2024; accepted 22 October 2024.

Abstract

This study conducts a financial projection of the basic pension in Korea, which provides cash assistance to the bottom 70% of elderly individuals aged 65 and over. The projection is carried out under both expansion and selective eligibility criteria, with particular emphasis on the latter. Specifically, the study examines two well-discussed selective eligibility criteria: 1) fixing the eligibility threshold at the 2024 value and adjusting it according to the inflation rate, and 2) linking the eligibility threshold to the median household income figure. To estimate the number of recipients under these selective scenarios, the study projects the future income evolution of the elderly, assuming the continuation of past income trends. Using the financial model of the basic pension developed by Shin and Kim (2021), the study finds that total fiscal spending could be reduced by 22% under the first selective scenario and by 17% under the second selective scenario, relative to the current system, in real terms between 2024 and 2070. With these fiscal savings, the study concludes that the full benefit amount could be increased from the current level of 334,810 won to 435,000 won under the first scenario and to 405,000 won under the second scenario by 2025.

Keywords

Basic Pension, Selective Eligibility Criteria, Pension Reform, Elderly Poverty, Financial Model of Basic Pension

JEL Code

H53, H55, I31, J10

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