In 2024, the government provided an average of 9.26 million won in in-kind welfare benefits to households, with an increase in medical support but a decrease in education and childcare assistance.
According to the National Data Agency's report on income statistics reflecting social in-kind transfers, the average social in-kind transfer income per household in 2024 was 9.26 million won, up 40,000 won (0.4%) from 2023.
Social in-kind transfers refer to the value of goods and services provided by the government to households or individuals, including health insurance premiums, free education and meals, childcare fees, and social service vouchers.
The average household income for 2024 was 74.27 million won, a 3.4% increase from the previous year. When adjusted for social in-kind transfer income, the adjusted household income rose to 83.53 million won, a 3.0% increase. The scale of in-kind welfare accounted for 12.5% of household income, down 0.4 percentage points from the previous year.
Medical support increased from 4.72 million won in 2023 to 4.88 million won in 2024, a rise of 3.5%. Its share of total in-kind transfers grew from 51.2% to 52.8%, an increase of 1.6 percentage points.
In contrast, education support decreased from 3.9 million won to 3.77 million won, a decline of 3.4%. Its proportion also fell from 42.3% to 40.7%, a drop of 1.6 percentage points. Education support has decreased for five consecutive years, down from 4.15 million won in 2019.
Childcare support fell from 350,000 won to 320,000 won, a 7.2% decrease. Other vouchers increased from 250,000 won to 280,000 won, an 11.4% rise. Medical and educational support accounted for 93.5% of total in-kind transfer income.
By age group, households led by individuals in their 40s received the highest in-kind transfer income at 14.99 million won, largely due to education support reaching 10.77 million won. This was followed by households in their 50s at 9.74 million won, those in their 60s and above at 7.97 million won, and those under 30 at 5.72 million won.
Households with members aged 65 and older received 8.69 million won in in-kind transfer income, with medical support accounting for 8.12 million won. In contrast, households under 30 had a relatively high proportion of childcare support, while those in their 40s focused on education and those over 60 on medical assistance.
For the lowest income quintile, in-kind transfer income was 7.27 million won, while the highest quintile received 12.53 million won, indicating that higher-income households received more in absolute terms. However, the proportion of in-kind transfers relative to household income was significantly higher for the lowest quintile at 46.8%, compared to 7.2% for the highest quintile.
In the lowest quintile, 88.0% of in-kind transfers were for medical support, while in the highest quintile, education made up 57.0% of the total.
In terms of household size, in-kind transfer income was 3.54 million won for single-person households, 6.73 million won for two-person households, 10.34 million won for three-person households, and 19.14 million won for four-person households. Households with five or more members received 30.19 million won.
When accounting for in-kind transfers, the Gini coefficient decreased from 0.325 to 0.281, a drop of 0.044, and the income quintile ratio fell from 5.78 to 4.33, a reduction of 1.45.
The relative poverty rate dropped from 15.3% to 10.5% after accounting for in-kind transfers, a decrease of 4.8 percentage points. The poverty rate among retirees improved significantly, falling from 37.7% to 25.7%, a reduction of 12.0 percentage points.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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