As of midnight on May 18, the Ministry of Interior and Safety reported that a total of 8,044,281 applications have been submitted for the first and second rounds of relief payments. This represents 22.4% of the total eligible recipients, with cumulative payments amounting to 2.3743 trillion won.
In the first round, 2,976,000 individuals applied, achieving a 92.1% application rate among eligible recipients. The total amount disbursed in this round was 1.6908 trillion won.
By payment method, the majority of applicants—4,787,716—chose credit or debit cards. This was followed by 1,628,787 applicants for prepaid cards, 1,421,863 for mobile or card-type local love gift certificates, and 205,915 for paper certificates.
Regionally, Gyeonggi Province had the highest number of applicants at 1,861,185, followed by Seoul with 1,233,812, Busan with 601,491, Gyeongnam with 559,596, and Incheon with 520,682.
The highest application rate was recorded in Jeonnam at 26.88%, followed by Jeonbuk at 25.69%, Busan at 24.91%, Gwangju at 24.43%, and Gyeongbuk at 23.40%.
The government began accepting applications for the second round of high oil price relief payments on May 18, targeting the bottom 70% of income earners. The support amounts vary by region, with 100,000 won for the metropolitan area, 150,000 won for non-metropolitan areas, 200,000 won for priority support regions experiencing population decline, and 250,000 won for special support areas.
Individuals who missed the application period for the first round (April 27 to May 8) can still apply during this second round.
The second round of payments will be available for online or offline applications until July 3 at 6 p.m., lasting approximately seven weeks. Recipients can choose to receive their payments via credit or debit cards, prepaid cards, or local love gift certificates, with a usage deadline of August 31.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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