Unclaimed insurance payments to migrants in South Korea reach record level
As of the end of June, insurance payments to migrants totaling 32.36 billion won, or about $24 million, remained unclaimed in South Korea. This is a record figure covering 54,572 cases, Korea Herald reports, citing Labor Ministry data obtained by Park Hae-cheol, a lawmaker from the Democratic Party of Korea.
Over the year, the amount of unpaid funds increased by 1.6 billion won, from 30.76 billion won. Park Hae-cheol said efforts to return such payments to migrants should be expanded so that workers do not lose money to which they are entitled. He also called for determining how to use the remaining unclaimed funds.
Two mandatory programs
The payments concern two mandatory insurance programs for foreign workers employed under the employment permit system. Payments that have not been claimed within three years are considered unclaimed and transferred to the Human Resources Development Service of Korea. It continues to identify individuals entitled to the money and pay them the funds.
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By the end of June, a total of 57.89 billion won had been transferred to the service: 20.91 billion won under the departure guarantee insurance program and 36.98 billion won under the return cost insurance program. As part of a campaign to return unclaimed payments, the service paid out 25.53 billion won, leaving 32.36 billion won unclaimed.
Number of insurance payments is rising
The volume of unclaimed funds is increasing amid a rise in the number of labor migrants and insurance payments. Last year, payments under departure guarantee insurance were made in 113,483 cases, totaling 457.4 billion won. The number of such payments was 69.6% higher than the 66,908 cases in 2021.
Over the same period, the number of return cost insurance payments increased by 28%, from 39,427 to 50,482 cases. Last year, their total amount was 24.5 billion won. Employers take out departure guarantee insurance to ensure severance payments to workers, while workers purchase return cost insurance to cover the cost of returning to their countries of origin.
