2025 Joint Social Sector Work Report
Grandparent Care Allowance for Mildly Disabled Grandchildren
Advance Child Support Payment System to Begin in July
Manual Developed to Prevent Secondary Damage from Dating Violence
The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family will expand government support for the childcare service this year to households with income up to 200% of the median income. Additionally, to support minor victims of sexual violence, a new self-reliance support allowance of 500,000 KRW per month will be established, strengthening protection measures for victims of violence.
On the afternoon of the 10th, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced these plans during the '2025 Joint Social Sector Work Report' conducted with the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Employment and Labor, and Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
The Ministry has devised three major policy goals: ▲ expanding care and job support to overcome low birth rates ▲ strengthening safety nets for vulnerable families and youth ▲ responding to and preventing violence to support safe daily lives free from violence.
This year, the Ministry will strengthen childcare support to alleviate the burden on dual-income households. The income eligibility for government-supported childcare services will be expanded to households earning up to 200% of the median income, with plans to support a total of 120,000 households this year. Additionally, for premature infants requiring intensive care, full-day infant care will be available up to 40 months of age. Grandparents qualified as childcare providers who care for grandchildren with mild disabilities will receive a grandparent care allowance.
Moreover, the care allowance paid to childcare providers will be increased from 11,630 KRW per hour last year to 12,180 KRW per hour this year, and an additional allowance of 1,500 KRW per hour will be newly provided for English care for children under 36 months.
The Saeil Center will expand vocational education and training in promising high-value regional industries and introduce a participation allowance of 100,000 KRW per month, up to four times, to enable trainees to focus on education and job-seeking activities during the training period. The employment retention incentive, which pays companies an additional 800,000 KRW after 12 months of regular employment, will also be expanded.
Kim Ki-nam, Director of Planning and Coordination at the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, explained, "We plan to announce the 4th Basic Plan for Women's Economic Activity within the first half of the year, expanding support policies from women with career interruptions to women across the life cycle, from youth to middle and older ages."
Policies to support vulnerable families and youth will also be expanded. Starting July this year, with the implementation of the advance payment system for child support, support for single-parent families will be increased, and the child-rearing support amount for low-income single-parent families will be raised by 20,000 KRW per child per month. Admission criteria for single-parent family welfare facilities will also be relaxed.
To help out-of-home youth establish a foundation for independence after leaving facilities, the self-reliance support allowance will be increased from 400,000 KRW to 500,000 KRW per month, and an additional 2 million KRW will be provided for vocational training through the National Tomorrow Learning Card (Ministry of Employment and Labor). Furthermore, digital-based specialized vocational training courses will be expanded to support employment and independence of out-of-school youth, and the voucher support for sanitary products for vulnerable female youth will be increased from 13,000 KRW to 14,000 KRW per month.
The response system for new types of violence such as digital sexual crimes, stalking, and dating violence will be strengthened, and support for victims of violence will be expanded. In particular, emergency housing support facilities will be diversified to meet the needs of stalking victims. To facilitate early detection and support for dating violence victims, victim diagnostic tools will be distributed, mobile legal counseling will be supported, and systems will be improved by producing response manuals to prevent secondary damage.
For minor victims of sexual violence who have difficulty receiving protection and support from their original families and reside in protective facilities, support will be provided to help them establish stable independence upon reaching adulthood and leaving the facility. The self-reliance support fund will be increased from 5 million KRW to 10 million KRW, and a new self-reliance support allowance will be provided at 500,000 KRW per month for up to five years.
Amendments to the Youth Sexual Protection Act will be pursued to expand the scope of punishment for grooming sexual crimes against children and adolescents from online to offline. To enhance protection of children and adolescents from sexual crimes, the mobile notification viewing time for sex offender information will be extended from 21 hours to 48 hours to increase the viewing rate.
Shin Young-sook, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, stated, "This year, the Ministry will further strengthen support for care and work-family balance to contribute to overcoming the pressing low birth rate crisis, provide more comprehensive and robust support for vulnerable groups in our society, and concentrate all our capabilities to create a society safe from violence."
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