Monthly Pension for Couples Rises Steadily to 5.43 Million Won... Number of Recipients Increasing

Number of Couples Receiving National Pension Surpasses 800,000
Doubled in the Past Five Years

The number of couples who are preparing for retirement by both enrolling in the National Pension Service is on the rise. The combined monthly pension benefits for couples can reach up to 5.43 million won, and the amount received is increasing every year. When both spouses receive their own National Pension benefits, it is much more advantageous for retirement planning.

According to the National Pension Service on May 29, the number of couples receiving old-age pension benefits has been steadily increasing. By year, the figures are as follows: 355,000 couples at the end of 2019, 427,000 couples at the end of 2020, 516,000 couples at the end of 2021, 625,000 couples at the end of 2022, 669,000 couples at the end of 2023, and 783,000 couples at the end of 2024. Even looking only at recent years, the number of couples receiving benefits has more than doubled in the past five years. As of the end of January this year, the number stood at 792,015 couples, approaching 800,000 couples.

Along with the increase in the number of couples receiving benefits, the average combined monthly pension for these couples has also been rising each year, reaching 1.11 million won as of the end of January. There have even been cases where couples receive the maximum combined monthly amount of 5.43 million won (2.6 million won for the husband and 2.83 million won for the wife). This amount far exceeds the 2.969 million won per month that the National Pension Research Institute has suggested as the appropriate monthly living expenses for retired couples, according to the 10th National Old-Age Security Panel Survey.

A combined monthly pension of 5 million won for a couple is more than 60% of the combined monthly salary of 8 million won for a working couple. This level is also recommended by the International Labour Organization (ILO). In addition, it is well above the amount that middle-aged and older adults in their 50s and above subjectively consider to be the appropriate living expenses for retirement. According to the results of the 10th National Old-Age Security Panel Survey conducted by the National Pension Research Institute under the National Pension Service in December last year, when assuming good health, people in their 50s and above considered the appropriate monthly living expenses for a couple in retirement to be 2.97 million won.

The claim by some that "even if both spouses enroll in the National Pension, only one can receive benefits in retirement, so it is disadvantageous for both to join" is misinformation. The National Pension is a social insurance system applied individually to each subscriber. If both spouses pay premiums for at least the minimum required period of 10 years, each can receive their own pension for life. Even if a spouse has no income and is not required to enroll, it is recommended to join voluntarily if possible. However, if one spouse in a couple receiving benefits passes away first, the surviving spouse must choose between their own old-age pension and the survivor's pension left by the deceased spouse. This is referred to as "duplicate benefit adjustment."