Last year, the total amount of government funds recovered due to fraudulent claims from central administrative agencies, local governments, and education offices reached a record 129.6 billion won.
The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission announced the results of its 'Public Finance Recovery System Compliance Inspection' on August 7.
According to the commission's findings, a total of 141,781 cases of fraudulent claims were detected last year, leading to the recovery of 129.6 billion won. Additionally, fines totaling 50 billion won were imposed on the institutions and individuals involved in the fraudulent claims.
This represents a 24% increase in the amount recovered compared to the previous year (104.2 billion won) and a 74% increase in fines (28.8 billion won), marking the highest figures ever recorded, according to the commission.
Notable cases included individuals receiving agricultural subsidies without actually farming and single-parent family support payments while concealing marital or cohabitation status. Other examples included fueling vehicles that were not eligible for support and receiving fuel subsidies while being out of business, as well as obtaining national work-study scholarships without providing actual work or falsely reporting attendance and training to receive employment stability incentives.
By category, the largest recovery amount was from livelihood benefits, totaling 29 billion won, followed by support funds for industry, small and medium enterprises, and energy at 22.9 billion won, and housing benefits at 10.3 billion won.
The Public Finance Recovery Act, implemented in 2020, mandates the recovery of benefits obtained through fraudulent claims for subsidies and imposes fines up to five times the amount of the benefits.
Lee Myung-soon, vice chair of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission, stated, "Fraudulent claims for public financial payments seriously undermine the fairness of society. We will strive to manage these funds strictly to ensure transparency in public finances."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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