Debt-related suicides claim 4,400 lives a year; hotline '1375' to launch in October

A nationwide debt counseling hotline, 1375, will launch in October, giving anyone struggling with debt a single number to call for comprehensive guidance on debt restructuring, personal rehabilitation and bankruptcy. Financial authorities also plan to build a specialized early-detection system for households in economic crisis and, in partnership with private financial firms, offer tailored financial products to those in need.

FSC Chairman Lee Eok-won presented the plan — a joint interagency suicide prevention strategy for people in economic crisis — at a Cabinet meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae on Tuesday, presided over by President Lee Jae Myung.

The measures were drawn up as part of a nine-sector suicide prevention package discussed at a Cabinet meeting on May 6. According to annual suicide statistics, the number of people who died by suicide due to debt and other financial problems rose from 3,089 in 2015 to 3,249 in 2020 and 4,398 in 2024.

Debt relief and support systems have been a recurring theme for President Lee, and the plan particularly underscores preventing suicides caused by unawareness of available support. At the June 2 Cabinet meeting, Lee directed officials to "find additional ways to identify vulnerable debtors in financial distress and step up outreach on debt restructuring and related options."

As a first step, the FSC will work with the Ministry of Science and ICT to assign the dedicated hotline number 1375 to the Credit Counseling and Recovery Service, which already serves as a comprehensive debt support agency, so that callers can be guided and connected to all relevant relief programs in a single call. The number encodes a message: 13 evoking a life worn down by debt, and 75 meaning "heal" in Korean. Calls will be toll-free for the caller.

Through the hotline, callers can receive one-stop support covering basic debt counseling, debt restructuring through the Credit Counseling and Recovery Service, assistance with court filings for personal rehabilitation or bankruptcy, combined support for financial, employment, welfare and psychological counseling, and reporting or consultation on illegal private lending.

Additional debt support hubs operated by the Credit Counseling and Recovery Service and the Korea Legal Aid Corporation will also be established. Two more comprehensive personal rehabilitation and bankruptcy support centers opened on July 2, bringing the total to 12, and six more integrated financial support centers are planned on top of the current 50. A system allowing debtors to obtain all required debt certificates in a single request when filing for personal rehabilitation or bankruptcy will be built at Korea Credit Information Services.

Another key feature is the development of a specialized risk-detection model for people in economic crisis, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The goal is to identify financial hardship earlier by drawing on data held by relevant agencies — combining financial data such as debt information with non-financial data such as national health insurance premium payment records, then feeding the resulting risk profiles into the ministry's household crisis detection system.

Financial data already linked to the Ministry of Health and Welfare's household crisis detection system will also be expanded to include information on vulnerable borrowers among users of policy-based financial products for low-income groups, as well as data on vulnerable debtors whose debt restructuring agreements have lapsed.

Alongside this, the FSC plans to work with private financial firms to offer specialized financial products that help financially vulnerable people in crisis manage their economic and financial lives more smoothly when using combined support services. The FSC will also actively identify and promote private-sector initiatives aimed at helping people overcome financial hardship.

If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of self-harm or suicide, contact the Ministry of Health and Welfare's helpline at 1393, available 24/7. Please request a translator for English-language services.