The Ministry of the Interior and Safety said April 28 that applications opened at 9 a.m. the previous day and totaled 552,900 as of midnight. That equals 17.1% of the 3,227,785 people eligible for the first round.
By method, 198,572 applicants chose credit or debit cards. For local gift certificates, 92,739 applied via mobile and 31,763 for paper vouchers. Another 229,826 applied for prepaid cards.
In July last year, credit and debit cards accounted for 76% of applications on the first day of the first round of “livelihood recovery” consumption coupons. The first-day application rate for those coupons was lower, at 13.8%.
By region, Seoul recorded the most applicants with 86,418, followed by Gyeonggi with 86,368. Next were Busan (50,173), South Jeolla (45,550), South Gyeongsang (41,179), North Jeolla (39,537), North Gyeongsang (35,924) and Incheon (29,992).
The relief payment was created to ease household burdens that have grown with higher oil prices and inflation tied to the war in the Middle East. Payments vary by income level and place of residence, with additional support for non-capital areas and regions facing population decline.
The first round is being issued first to basic livelihood recipients, near-poverty households and single-parent families. Basic livelihood recipients receive 550,000 won, while near-poverty households and single-parent families receive 450,000 won. Residents in non-capital areas and population-decline regions receive an additional 50,000 won each.
To reduce congestion in the first week, applications follow a day-of-week schedule based on the last digit of an applicant’s birth year. Those ending in 1 or 6 applied April 27; 2 or 7 on April 28; 3 or 8 on April 29; and 4 or 9 and 5 or 0 on April 30. The schedule will be lifted afterward.
Vulnerable people who miss the first-round window (April 27 to May 8) can apply during the second-round payment period (May 18 to July 3), which covers 70% of the population. The relief payment must be used by Aug. 31, and any unused amount will expire.
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.