Ministry of Culture's Munhwa Nuri Card Support Fund Increased by 140,000 Won + Expansion of Eligible Recipients

2,500 Won Discount on Movie Tickets
10% Discount on Book Purchases

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on the 31st that this year, the integrated cultural voucher (Munhwa Nuri Card) support fund for vulnerable groups will be increased to 140,000 won, and the support target will also be expanded.

The Munhwa Nuri Card is a program that supports cultural, artistic, travel, and sports activities for basic livelihood security recipients and legally designated lower-income groups aged 6 and above (born on or before December 31, 2019). It provides discount benefits for movie viewing, book purchases, and more.

This year, the Munhwa Nuri Card support fund increased by 10,000 won from last year's 130,000 won. The number of beneficiaries this year also increased by 60,000 to a total of 2.64 million people. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism plans to invest a total of 374.5 billion won (263.6 billion won in national funds and 110.9 billion won in local funds) in the Munhwa Nuri Card program this year.

The Munhwa Nuri Card can be used at over 32,000 affiliated stores nationwide in the fields of culture and arts, domestic travel, and sports. The ministry stated that from this year, Baduk (Go) and fishing have been newly added to the fields where the Munhwa Nuri Card can be used, and they plan to continuously expand new affiliated stores.

Using the Munhwa Nuri Card offers various benefits such as a 2,500 won discount on movie tickets, a 10% discount on book purchases at major bookstores, up to 40% discount on admission fees for the four major professional sports (volleyball, basketball, soccer, baseball), discounts on performance and exhibition tickets, musical instrument purchases, accommodation fees, amusement park (theme park) admission tickets, sports facility usage fees, and sports goods (discount rates vary by affiliated store). Admission tickets donated by cultural and artistic organizations called 'Nanum Tickets' (free or discounted) can also be used up to 4 tickets per person (limit of 3 times per month). Detailed information on affiliated stores by region and category, free and discount benefits, and 'Nanum Tickets' can be found on the Munhwa Nuri website or mobile app.

The issuance period for the Munhwa Nuri Card is from February 3 to November 28, and applications can be made through local community centers nationwide, the Munhwa Nuri website, or the mobile application. The Munhwa Nuri Cards issued this year can be used until December 31.

Among last year's Munhwa Nuri Card users, those who maintain their eligibility will have this year's support fund automatically recharged without a separate application. An automatic recharge completion notification message will be sent to the eligible recipients, and after February 3, automatic recharge status can also be checked through local community centers nationwide, the Munhwa Nuri website, phone, or mobile app.

Low-vision and visually impaired users can apply for a Braille card issuance. From this year, the ministry will implement a service that notifies users one month before the card expiration date to prevent inconvenience caused by missing the card reissuance period. Additionally, to ensure that beneficiaries do not miss out on benefits this year, the ministry plans to actively identify and guide non-beneficiaries by linking with the government’s representative administrative notification service, the national secretary 'Goopy.'

If the card usage limit is insufficient, users can recharge up to 300,000 won (within 2 million won per year) with their own funds in addition to the government support fund. By registering only the Munhwa Nuri Card information in simple payment services (NH Pay, Naver Pay), users can make simple payments online and offline at affiliated stores without the physical card.

A policy official from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said, "We increase the amount of the Munhwa Nuri Card every year to ensure fair cultural access opportunities for vulnerable groups." He added, "We will continue cultural enjoyment support policies so that vulnerable groups, who are going through even more difficult times due to recent challenging economic conditions, can find warm hope through culture."