As the aging population accelerates and more individuals receive national pension insurance payments in their later years, the pension amount disbursed in February surpassed 4 trillion won for the first time. In contrast, the number of new enrollees in the national pension due to low birth rates is on the decline.
According to the National Pension Service on the 15th, the pension amount disbursed to beneficiaries in February was 4.0238 trillion won. This is an increase of 2.0% (775 billion won) from January's disbursement amount (3.9463 trillion won). The total pension disbursed for the year is estimated to be around 50 trillion won.
This is due to the baby boomer generation retiring, and they have been enrolled in the national pension for an extended period, resulting in a higher pension amount per individual. The pension disbursement first reached the 10 trillion won mark in 2012 at 11.5508 trillion won. Six years later, in 2018, it exceeded 20 trillion won at 20.7527 trillion won, and in 2022, it surpassed 30 trillion won at 34.0201 trillion won. Last year, it recorded 43.0748 trillion won.
It took 6 years to rise from 10 trillion won to 20 trillion won, 4 years from 20 trillion won to 30 trillion won, and 2 years from 30 trillion won to 40 trillion won. The breach of 40 trillion won to 50 trillion won is expected to be achieved in just 1 year.
Last year, the number of people receiving national pensions was 7,372,039. This is an increase of nearly 550,000 compared to the previous year. In contrast, the number of national pension enrollees paying premiums peaked at 22.5 million in 2022, declining to 22.38 million in 2023 and 21.98 million last year, marking two consecutive years of decrease. However, premium revenue still exceeds the pension disbursement amount.