Gyeonggi Province will provide up to 1.2 million KRW annually for elderly caregiving expenses.
On the 19th, Gyeonggi Province announced that it will newly implement the ‘Gyeonggi Province Caregiving SOS Project’ this year, which supports caregiving expenses up to 1.2 million KRW per person annually without any limit on the number of times, to ease the burden of caregiving costs for elderly people experiencing difficulties in caregiving.
This year, 15 cities and counties in the province, including Hwaseong, Namyangju, and Gwangmyeong, will participate in the project. These local governments will start accepting in-person applications for caregiving expenses at eup/myeon/dong administrative welfare centers from the 20th of this month.
The support targets are elderly people aged 65 or older in the province who are basic livelihood security recipients (living, medical, housing) or belong to the near-poverty class, and who have received caregiving services while hospitalized at hospital-level medical institutions or higher due to injury or illness after 2025. However, those who receive caregiving expenses through other programs such as the Gyeonggi Province-type emergency welfare project or city/county-level caregiving expense support projects are excluded.
Applicants must first receive caregiving services and pay the caregiving company (caregiver) for the caregiving expenses. Then, they should prepare application documents such as the caregiving confirmation certificate and apply at the eup/myeon/dong administrative welfare center of their address. After review by the city/county, if payment is approved, cash will be deposited into the applicant’s own bank account.
Support can be received up to 1.2 million KRW per person annually, with no restrictions on the number of payments or the amount per payment within the 1.2 million KRW limit.
If it is difficult or impossible to open or use an account under the applicant’s name, proxy receipt is possible through the account of a spouse or direct blood relative. For more detailed information, inquiries can be made at the eup/myeon/dong administrative welfare center of the applicant’s address.
Gyeonggi Province plans to expand the project to all 31 cities and counties in the province.
Kim Hana, Director of Welfare at Gyeonggi Province, emphasized, "Through the Caregiving SOS Project, we hope to provide low-income elderly patients with the opportunity to maintain basic human dignity and offer caregivers a temporary break from the mental and physical stress caused by family caregiving." She added, "We will continue to expand customized welfare policies for vulnerable groups."
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