The deadline to use the high oil price damage relief funds paid out in the wake of the Middle East war is one day away. Any remaining amount will disappear automatically after midnight on the 31st.
According to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety on the 30th, the deadline to use the high oil price damage relief funds expires at midnight on the 31st.
The high oil price damage relief funds were first paid starting on Apr. 27 to vulnerable groups such as the near-poor, single-parent families, and basic livelihood security recipients. A second round of payments went to the bottom 70% by income.
Vulnerable groups received 450,000 to 600,000 won per person, and the remaining eligible recipients received 100,000 to 250,000 won.
Applicants for the first and second rounds of high oil price damage relief funds, which closed on the 3rd of last month, totaled 35,403,928. That amounted to 97.97% of the total eligible population of 36,138,987. The total amount paid was 6.1123 trillion won.
Funds paid via credit and debit cards totaled 3.5492 trillion won. Of that, 3.4542 trillion won had been used as of the 18th. Despite a usage rate of 97.3%, the remaining balance is about 95 billion won.
The funds can be used at small merchants with annual sales of 3 billion won or less located in the special or metropolitan city, or city or county of the recipient's address. They can be used at gas stations regardless of annual sales. However, some large outlets and certain gas stations that share a business registration number and payment terminal are excluded.
They cannot be used at online shopping malls; entertainment and gambling-related businesses; or cash-like businesses. If paid as local love gift certificates, they must be used at affiliated merchants for those certificates.
Remaining funds can be checked through card companies or local love gift certificate applications.
The Ministry of the Interior and Safety (MOIS), together with local governments and credit and debit card companies, is notifying nonusers of the deadline through the National Secretary notification service, text messages, and applications and websites.