Abolition of the Return Home Policy After Enlistment

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The system that allows conscripts who are unable to undergo training due to health reasons after enlistment to be sent home will be abolished. This is because conscripts will now undergo a pre-enlistment physical examination before final enlistment.

According to the Military Manpower Administration on the 23rd, due to the revision of the Military Service Act, active duty soldiers enlisting in seven army divisions under the 2nd Operational Command and supplementary military training conscripts after August 16 must undergo a pre-enlistment physical examination at the Military Manpower Administration before enlistment.

The pre-enlistment examination system was newly introduced to replace the military unit physical examination, aiming to resolve public inconvenience caused by cases of re-enlistment after being sent home and to enhance the reliability of physical examinations. Previously, physical examinations were conducted after enlistment at military units, and if a conscript was found to be in a health condition that prevented training, they were sent home within seven days.

However, with the new regulation, conscripts will be examined for diseases and physical conditions using specialized medical personnel and advanced equipment at local Military Manpower Administration offices up to three days before enlistment, and will enlist based on the results. Accordingly, the system of sending conscripts home will be abolished.

The Military Manpower Administration plans to pilot the revised system this year for conscripts enlisting in the seven divisions under the 2nd Operational Command and gradually expand it annually until 2025.

A Military Manpower Administration official stated, "Those who do not undergo the pre-enlistment physical examination cannot enlist in military units, so those who receive a notification for the examination must take it on the designated date and enlist."