By Our Correspondent
National News – South Korea has unveiled a fresh cash support programme targeting nearly 36 million citizens as authorities move to reduce the pressure of rising fuel costs linked to the ongoing Middle East conflict.
The initiative, approved through a 26.2 trillion-won supplementary budget, is aimed at supporting low- and middle-income households struggling with increasing living expenses.
The South Korean government announced that the second phase of the fuel relief package will begin next Monday, following an earlier round of assistance introduced in April.
Officials said the programme is focused on the bottom 70 per cent of income earners, with payments expected to stimulate local spending and cushion economic hardship.
Under the new scheme, residents in the greater Seoul area will receive 100,000 won each, while people living in regions facing population decline could receive as much as 250,000 won.
Vulnerable citizens, including recipients of basic livelihood security support, had earlier received up to 600,000 won during the first phase of the intervention.
Eligibility for the cash assistance will be determined using household national health insurance payments recorded in March 2026.
Single-person households that paid 130,000 won or less in insurance contributions are expected to qualify.
Authorities also stated that individuals earning 43.4 million won annually or below may benefit from the programme.
However, households with assets exceeding 1.2 billion won or those that earned more than 20 million won in financial income last year will not qualify for the relief payments.
Applications for the programme will remain open until July 3.
Recipients can access the funds through debit cards, credit cards, prepaid cards, or local currency vouchers.
The money must be spent before August 31 and can only be used at small local businesses with annual sales below 3 billion won.
Interior Minister Yun Ho-jung said the support package is expected to ease the burden caused by high oil prices and help revive consumer spending across the country.
