Foreign workers collected record W110b in unemployment benefits last year, with 8 in 10 going to ethnic Koreans and Chinese nationals

Unemployment benefits paid to foreign workers in South Korea hit a record high last year, surpassing 110 billion won ($79.5 million), with ethnic Korean-Chinese and Chinese nationals accounting for roughly 8 in 10 recipients.

According to data submitted to People Power Party lawmaker Kim Wi-sang by the Ministry of Employment and Labor, total unemployment benefits paid to foreign workers last year reached 113.4 billion won — the highest ever recorded. The number of foreign recipients also hit an all-time high of 16,789.

Payouts to foreign workers have grown each year: from 75.97 billion won in 2022 to 80.59 billion won in 2023 (up 6.0% from the previous year) and 91.74 billion won in 2024 (up 13.8%), before surging 23.6% in a single year to reach last year's record.

Ethnic Korean-Chinese workers received the largest share at 73.85 billion won, while Chinese nationals collected 15.63 billion won. Combined, the two groups received 89.48 billion won, accounting for 78.9% of all unemployment benefits paid to foreign workers — up from 77.3% in 2024.

Vietnam ranked third, with workers receiving 5 billion won. The United States followed at 2.82 billion won, Japan at 2.73 billion won, Taiwan at 1.82 billion won and the Philippines at 1.71 billion won.

By headcount, ethnic Korean-Chinese workers made up the largest group at 10,756 recipients (64.0%), followed by Chinese nationals at 2,327 (13.8%), for a combined total of 13,083, or 77.9% of all foreign recipients. Vietnam came next with 768, followed by the United States with 408, Japan with 396, Taiwan with 277 and the Philippines with 269.

Yet as of the end of 2025, ethnic Korean-Chinese and Chinese nationals enrolled in employment insurance numbered 118,871 — just 25.9% of the total 458,644 foreign enrollees.

The high proportion of ethnic Korean-Chinese is attributed to the large number of long-term Korean-Chinese residents in the country and their access to long-stay visas such as permanent residency and overseas Korean status. Unlike workers on non-professional employment permits (E-9 visas), holders of the overseas Korean visa (F-4) can stay long-term and change jobs freely. Critics say this has led to cases where workers take short-term jobs, quit quickly and repeatedly claim unemployment benefits.

By residency status, permanent residents (F-5) topped the list with 6,895 recipients, followed by overseas Koreans (F-4) with 4,900, marriage migrants (F-6) with 3,138 and long-term residents (F-2) with 1,129. Non-professional employment visa (E-9) holders accounted for just 20 recipients, receiving a combined 63 million won.

The number of foreign workers enrolled in employment insurance has itself been rising sharply. Enrollment grew from 177,224 in 2021 to 458,644 in 2025 — a 2.6-fold increase over five years — and climbed further to 473,593 by the end of July this year.

Employment insurance premiums levied on foreign regular workers — covering unemployment benefits as well as employment stability and vocational skills development programs — rose from 92.92 billion won in 2021 to 177.28 billion won in 2025.

For the unemployment benefit account, funded by a premium of 1.8% of monthly wages, employees and employers each pay half (0.9%). For the employment stability and vocational skills development account, funded by a premium of 0.25 to 0.85 percent of monthly wages, employers bear the full cost.