Deliberate non-payment of child support will now carry criminal penalties of up to three years in prison, increased from the previous maximum of one year. The upper limit for fines will also rise from 10 million won to 30 million won, and the grace period before criminal penalties apply will be shortened from one year to six months.
The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced on August 25 that these changes were approved during the 52nd Child Support Enforcement Committee meeting held at the Government Seoul Building on August 24.
To begin with, the ministry plans to amend the Child Support Security and Support Act to increase the penalties for non-payment from a maximum of one year in prison or a fine of up to 10 million won to a maximum of three years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million won.
The grace period before criminal penalties are applied will also be reduced. Currently, a person must fail to pay child support for one year after receiving a detention order from the court before facing criminal charges; this will be cut to six months.
The scope for checking the immigration status of child support debtors will also be expanded. Currently, the government can request immigration data without the debtor's consent only for those who have received advance payments of child support. The plan is to extend this to include all debtors who are subject to child support enforcement.
Efforts to recover advance child support payments will be strengthened. The National Tax Service will receive information on delinquent advance payments and will encourage debtors to make payments directly. The two agencies will also work on linking their computer systems for quicker information sharing.
During this committee meeting, 322 enforcement actions were approved, targeting 264 child support debtors. Among them, the individual with the highest debt has failed to pay 280 million won in child support, with the average debt amounting to approximately 45 million won.
From January to August this year, there have been 1,042 enforcement actions against child support debtors, an increase of 250 cases (31.6%) compared to the same period last year, which saw 792 cases. This year's actions include 490 travel bans, 336 driver's license suspensions, and 216 public disclosures.
Since the enforcement system was implemented in October 2021, a total of 4,403 enforcement actions have been recorded as of August this year. Travel bans accounted for the majority at 2,400 cases, followed by 1,499 driver's license suspensions and 504 public disclosures.
Minister of Gender Equality and Family Won Min-kyung stated, “Child support is not merely a financial obligation but a fundamental responsibility that parents must fulfill to ensure their minor children can live stably and grow healthily. We will clarify the accountability for deliberate non-payment of child support and enhance the effectiveness of the system to ensure actual payments are made.”
* This article has been translated by AI.
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