Seoul City Recruiting Families for 'Foreign Domestic Helper' Service
Priority for Single-Parent and Multi-Child Families
Caregivers with Certification... Fluent in English, Communicate in Korean
Service Hours from 8 AM to 8 PM... Choose 4, 6, or 8 Hours per Day
Apply 24/7 via Service Provider Mobile App
The Seoul Metropolitan Government is officially launching the 'Foreign Domestic Caregiver Pilot Project.' As a support measure to reduce the household and caregiving burdens of parenting families and to prevent career interruptions due to childcare, the service usage period is from September for six months, with options for full-time or part-time service. The usagefee is based on the hourly minimum wage (9,860 KRW), amounting to approximately 1.19 million KRW per month for 4 hours per day.
On the 16th, Seoul announced that it will recruit families to use the Foreign Domestic Caregiver Pilot Project service for three weeks starting from the 17th, in cooperation with the Ministry of Employment and Labor.
The 'Foreign Domestic Caregiver Pilot Project' is a measure for caregivers who face career interruptions or give up childbirth due to soaring caregiving costs amid a decrease in domestic care workers and an aging population. Service use is open to households with children aged 12 or younger or those expecting childbirth, regardless of income level. Selection priority is given to single-parent, multi-child, dual-income, and pregnant households, with final selection considering factors such as children's age and service usage period.
One hundred foreign domestic caregivers who will provide the service have been selected under the supervision of the Korea Industrial Human Resources Corporation and the Ministry of Employment and Labor. Among holders of relevant certificates certified by the Philippine government, candidates were selected after language proficiency assessments in English and Korean, health checkups, and background checks including criminal records. The qualification requirements are holders of the Caregiving NCⅡ certificate certified by the Philippine government, aged 24 to 38. They hold E-9 employment permit status, are all from the Philippines, fluent in English, and capable of communicating at a certain level in Korean.
The service usage period is six months from early September to the end of February. Users can choose between full-time (8 hours) and part-time (6 or 4 hours), with available hours from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday. However, weekly working hours cannot exceed 52 hours.
The user’s financial burden is calculated based on the hourly minimum wage (9,860 KRW) plus minimal indirect costs such as the four major social insurances (employment insurance, national pension, national health insurance, and industrial accident compensation insurance). For families using the service 4 hours per day, the monthly cost is about 1.19 million KRW. This is 9.2% cheaper than the current public part-time comprehensive childcare worker service (care + housekeeping) at about 1.31 million KRW per month, and 21.7% cheaper than private domestic caregivers at 1.52 million KRW per month.
Applications can be made by signing up on the mobile apps of the service providers, Home Story Life Co., Ltd. (Daeri Jubu) or Hubris Co., Ltd. (Dolbom Plus), and clicking on the 'Seoul Foreign Domestic Caregiver Pilot Project' to apply.
Kim Seon-soon, Director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Women and Family Office, said, "This is the first time in Korea that a foreign domestic caregiver pilot project is being promoted to support families raising children aged 12 or younger who are in various situations, such as those having difficulty using parental leave or those who want to focus on their careers." She added, "It can be a new option for families facing career interruptions or difficulties in child-rearing, so we hope many interested parties will apply."
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