Comprehensive Low Birthrate Support Plan 'Birth Support Seoul Project' Announced
Expanded Support... Solving Housing Issues and Achieving Work-Life Balance
Support for SMEs' 'Parental Leave Replacement Workers'... Salary Compensation Provided
Seoul City will increase the supply of housing for newlyweds and provide support for housing costs to overcome low birth rates. For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), it will compensate not only for substitute personnel during parental leave but also for allowances and maternity leave pay. It also plans to support wedding preparation costs for newlyweds, investing 6.7 trillion won over two years for this purpose.
On the 29th, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon announced the 'Birth Support Seoul Project' centered on these support measures at Seoul City Hall, stating, "From now on, we will provide comprehensive support not only for caregivers but also for prospective caregivers such as youth, newlyweds, and infertile couples, covering not only childbirth, childcare, and care but also more fundamental issues such as housing, work, and life balance."
The measures announced by Seoul City on this day are an expanded version of the 'Mom and Dad Happiness Project' announced by Mayor Oh in 2022. Since the current low birth rate situation reflects a comprehensive index of chronic problems such as changes in young people's values who no longer see marriage and childbirth as essential, career interruptions due to childbirth and childcare, and high housing prices, it was judged that it cannot be solved by fragmented policies.
The biggest feature of this measure is the expansion of support from 52 projects in two fields (birth support and childcare support) to 87 projects in three fields (care and housing, child-friendly work-life balance, meeting and childbirth). The budget for this will be 6.7 trillion won, nearly double the 3.6 trillion won invested over the past two years.
Additional Expansion Due to Popularity of 'Mirinae House'... Support for Loan Limits and Interest Rates
First, Seoul will promote the 'Seoul-type low birth rate housing policy' tailored to newlyweds and caregivers. This is based on the analysis that stable housing positively influences the decision to have children. Starting with the first complex, Olympic Park Foreon (Dunchon Jugong Reconstruction Complex), 1,000 units of the long-term lease housing II 'Mirinae House' will be supplied this year for newlyweds composed of household members without housing. Seoul plans to supply 4,000 units annually from 2026.
'Mirinae House' is one of the housing policies responding to low birth rates, inspired by the fact that newlyweds living in the 'long-term lease housing' introduced by Mayor Oh in 2007 had both higher average number of children and average number of births compared to other couples. Households with one child can extend the residence period from 10 to 20 years, and households with two or more children are given the opportunity to purchase the house at up to 20% below market price, attracting much interest from newlyweds. The competition rate for Olympic Park Foreon reached as high as 213 to 1.
From January next year, housing cost support of 7.2 million won in total (300,000 won per month per household) will begin for housing-free households with newborns for two years. This aims to minimize cases of leaving Seoul or giving up having children due to housing costs. Next year, 1,380 households will be supported, expanding to 4,140 households in 2026. Along with this, the loan limit for newlywed rental deposit interest support will be raised from 200 million won to 300 million won. The support interest rate will also be increased from a maximum of 3.6% per annum to 4.5% per annum, with support planned for up to 10 years.
Expansion of Allowances for Substitute Personnel During Parental Leave
Support measures for work-life balance have also been introduced. To assist employees of SMEs who find it harder to utilize work-family balance systems compared to large corporations, Seoul will expand the 'SME Work-Life Balance Point System,' which provides incentives to SMEs that implement their own childbirth and childcare promotion and work-life balance systems.
The key is to add three new incentive categories from next year. These include support for substitute personnel working for six months during parental leave with a monthly allowance of 200,000 won ('Parental Leave Substitute Personnel' support), provision of a 'Colleague Support Allowance' of 100,000 won per month for one year to substitutes when SME employees take parental leave, and 'Seoul-type Maternity Leave Pay Compensation' supporting up to 900,000 won for the last 30 days of maternity leave.
A three-part set of tailored support for small business owners, who have been a blind spot in childbirth and childcare support policies, has been implemented since October. The small business owner childbirth and childcare three-part set includes ▲support for substitute personnel during parental leave (support for substitute personnel or labor costs for six months), ▲linkage to private childcare services (supporting two-thirds of usage fees when business owners and workers use private childcare services), and ▲support for business suspension losses (support for rent and public utility fees during suspension due to pregnancy and childbirth of the business owner or spouse).
Additionally, from next year, Seoul will become the first in the nation to provide childbirth and leave pay support to self-employed individuals and freelancers who work alone and thus have no concept of maternity leave, allowing them to take maternity leave when they or their spouses give birth. Pregnant self-employed individuals and freelancers will receive 900,000 won in childbirth pay, and those with pregnant spouses will receive 800,000 won in spousal maternity leave pay.
Reducing 'Seudeume' Concerns... Support for Wedding Costs and Discounts on Childcare Products
New policies such as 'Support for Newlywed Wedding and Household Expenses' and 'Operation of Half-Price Childcare Products Mall' will also be promoted.
To ease the burden of wedding preparation costs for newlyweds, up to 1 million won will be supported from next year for wedding preparations such as Seudeume (studio, dress, makeup) and setting up a marital household. Eligible are newlyweds who register their marriage within one year after January 1, 2025, with household income below 150% of the median income, and more than 20,000 households are expected to be supported next year.
Considering that the burden of childcare costs is a major factor preventing childbirth plans and that prices of essential childcare items such as diapers and formula have surged, increasing household burdens, the 'Birth Support Mall,' where childcare products can be purchased at up to half price, will open in March next year. Exclusive coupons for use at the 'Birth Support Mall' are also being prepared.
The popular 'Seoul-type Kids Cafe,' loved by both caregivers and children, will be established with one location per neighborhood, totaling 400 locations by 2026. Seoul City will operate 'pop-up Seoul-type Kids Cafes' at festivals and events it hosts to enhance convenience for visitors with children. To address care gaps for infants, toddlers, and elementary school children, the 'Seoul-type Hourly Specialized Daycare Center,' which allows care in one-hour units, and the 'Seoul-type Morning Care Center,' which cares for elementary school children before school and escorts them to school, will be expanded to all 25 autonomous districts.
Mayor Oh said, "Through Birth Support Seoul Project Season 2, we will make the decision to have children easier, lighten the burden of raising children, and upgrade to a more thorough and fundamental low birth rate policy. Since the low birth rate problem is difficult to reverse with just one or two measures, we will continue to implement various policies in a balanced manner as a first mover in solving the low birth rate issue."
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