Consumers seeking to protect their minimum living expenses will find relief as they will no longer need to submit court documents when offsetting loans and deposits. A new account integration service will allow users to check their total bank account balances at once.
The Financial Supervisory Service and the Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearings Institute announced on September 29 that they will sequentially implement the 'Minimum Living Expenses Verification Account Integration Service' starting on the 30th to enhance consumer convenience and protect vulnerable groups.
Previously, many banks required court rulings or decisions as proof of deposits that are exempt from seizure under civil execution law when offsetting loans and deposits. There have been instances where consumers were unable to receive recognition even after submitting the Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearings Institute's 'All My Accounts' results or proof of eligibility due to the lack of a court ruling. The Supreme Court has determined that minimum living expenses can be verified through account inquiry records and transaction histories from the Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearings Institute.
With the new service, consumers can visit their respective banks to request account verification. Upon consent, the bank will check the customer's account balances across all banks through the Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearings Institute. Previously excluded 'hidden accounts' will also be included in the inquiry.
A total of 15 banks will participate in this service. Some banks, including Busan, Gyeongnam, Gwangju, Jeonbuk, KEB Hana Bank, and Kakao Bank, will begin implementation at the end of September, while others, such as KB Kookmin, Woori, Hana, Shinhan, iM Bank, Jeju Bank, and NongHyup Bank, are expected to launch their services in October. All participating banks aim to complete the rollout by the end of October.
However, financial institutions must obtain customer consent for the inquiry, and they cannot secure consent in advance at stages where verification of minimum living expenses is not required, such as at the time of loan agreements. If the inquiry and actual offsetting occur at different times, additional documentation may be requested. This service will only verify balances in the banking sector, and separate documentation may be needed to check balances in secondary financial institutions.
Currently, deposits exempt from seizure under civil execution law are limited to 2.5 million won per individual. The Financial Supervisory Service expects that this new system will reduce the burden on consumers who previously had to undergo separate legal procedures to recover small deposits. Future plans include discussions with the Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearings Institute to expand the inquiry scope to secondary financial institutions and consider introducing non-face-to-face application procedures.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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