In-kind welfare provided by the state, such as national health insurance, national scholarships, and free child care, totaled an annual average of 9.26 million won per household. With low birthrates and an aging population, medical care accounted for more than half (52.8%) of social in-kind transfer income.
According to the "income statistics reflecting social in-kind transfers" that the Ministry of Data and Statistics (MODS) released on the 18th, as of 2024, social in-kind transfer income per household was 9.26 million won, up 0.4% from a year earlier (9.23 million won).
Social in-kind transfers refer to education, medical, and child care services and energy vouchers provided free of charge by the central or local government to households or individuals. It means the government covered about 9.26 million won in social services and goods—such as medical and education expenses—that households would otherwise have to pay directly.
The share relative to total household income (74.27 million won) was 12.5%, down 0.7 percentage point(s) from the previous year (13.6%).
Among low-income groups, in-kind welfare accounted for nearly half. Social in-kind transfer income for households in the bottom 20% (first quintile) was 7.27 million won, equivalent to 46.8% of their annual income. Of this, 88.0% was medical support, which is attributed to the large share of older adults.
For high-income groups, the absolute amount of in-kind welfare was larger. Social in-kind transfers decreased from 7.27 million won in the first quintile to 6.81 million won in the second quintile, then rose to 8.67 million won in the third, 11.0 million won in the fourth, and 12.53 million won in the fifth. From the fourth quintile upward, education outweighed medical care.