Paju-si Launches New Project 'Discovering Impoverished Elderly with Basic Pension'

Selection of households with 'Basic Pension income recognized as 0 won'
Linked to Basic Livelihood Security Benefit application... Alleviating elderly poverty

Gyeonggi Paju City (Mayor Kim Kyung-il) is launching a proactive poverty elderly discovery project using the basic pension application survey as a new project for the new year. By analyzing the results of the basic pension survey to identify and support those eligible to receive both the basic pension and the basic livelihood security benefits simultaneously, the city aims to actively address the issue of elderly poverty.

Paju City is promoting a proactive project to identify elderly people in poverty by utilizing the basic pension application survey as a new business for the New Year. Provided by Paju City

The elderly population in Paju is 83,000, accounting for 16% of the total population, marking its entry into an aged society. Accordingly, Paju City has decided to newly implement a project to identify and support vulnerable elderly groups to prevent retirees from falling into poverty due to income discontinuity after retirement.

The basic pension application survey will be utilized to discover impoverished elderly individuals. The basic pension is provided to ensure a comfortable old age for seniors aged 65 and over, typically paid to the bottom 70% based on recognized income standards. Among them, the city plans to identify those additionally eligible for basic livelihood security benefits and enable them to receive welfare benefits.

Currently, Paju City processes about 8,000 basic pension application surveys annually. The city plans to review households with a 'recognized income amount of 0 won' from this data to determine eligibility for basic livelihood security benefits, select candidates, and then send guidance letters so that they can receive both the basic pension and basic livelihood security benefits simultaneously.

Since 43% of basic livelihood recipients in the city are basic pension beneficiaries (seniors aged 65 and over), Paju City plans to operate a basic social welfare policy for ‘direct linkage to livelihood benefits for elderly poverty households’ by assigning three welfare survey team leaders with social welfare experience as dedicated personnel to ensure prompt processing.

Kwon Ye-ja, Director of Welfare Support Division, stated, “We will do our best to implement welfare policies that meet citizens’ needs by guiding integrated applications for necessary services at the eup, myeon, and dong levels so that citizens do not miss out on support due to lack of awareness or have to make multiple visits for additional applications. We will also support shortening the usual three-month basic pension determination period to a final 1.5 months.”