Did the Chinese Take All the Unemployment Benefits Too?... Foreign Workers Received a Record 113.4 Billion Won

Unemployment Benefits Paid to Foreigners Hit 113.4 Billion Won Last Year
Top Recipients: China, Vietnam, United States, Japan, Taiwan, and the Philippines

The unemployment benefits paid to foreign workers reached a record high last year, amounting to nearly 113.4 billion won. Approximately 79% of the total benefits were received by ethnic Koreans from China and Chinese nationals.

According to materials submitted by Assemblyman Kim Wisang of the People Power Party, based on data from the Ministry of Employment and Labor as of September 20, 2026, the amount of unemployment benefits paid to foreigners in 2025 was tallied at 113,399 million won. After falling to 75,975 million won in 2022, the benefit amount increased to 80,592 million won in 2023, then to 91,739 million won in 2024, surpassing 110 billion won last year.

Last year, the unemployment benefits paid to ethnic Koreans from China totaled 73,847 million won. Chinese nationals received 15,635 million won. The combined total for these groups was 89,482 million won, accounting for 78.9% of all unemployment benefits paid to foreigners. The number of recipients was also significant: 10,756 ethnic Koreans from China and 2,327 Chinese nationals, totaling 13,083, which made up 77.9% of all foreign recipients, who numbered 16,789.

On the other hand, as of the end of last year, the number of ethnic Koreans from China and Chinese nationals enrolled in employment insurance was 118,871, which is only 25.9% of the total foreign subscribers (458,644). This is attributed to a large population of ethnic Koreans who have settled in Korea for a long time and joined the workforce, as well as many holders of long-term residency or overseas Korean statuses, such as permanent residents or overseas Koreans, being enrolled in employment insurance.

By nationality, after China, the largest groups of recipients were as follows: Vietnam (768 recipients, totaling 5,001 million won), the United States (408 recipients, 2,817 million won), Japan (396 recipients, 2,734 million won), Taiwan (277 recipients, 1,819 million won), and the Philippines (269 recipients, 1,705 million won). The benefit amounts for these countries are: Vietnam, 5,001 million won; the United States, 2,817 million won; Japan, 2,734 million won; Taiwan, 1,819 million won; and the Philippines, 1,705 million won.

In terms of visa categories, the largest number of recipients held the Permanent Resident (F-5) visa, with 6,895 people, followed by Overseas Koreans (F-4) with 4,900, Marriage Migrants (F-6) with 3,138, and Resident (F-2) with 1,129. Only 20 recipients held the Non-professional Work (E-9) visa, with a total benefit amount of 63 million won.

The number of foreign subscribers to employment insurance is also rising rapidly. The number increased from 177,224 in 2021 to 458,644 last year, marking a 2.6-fold increase. As of the end of July this year, the figure had reached 473,593. Additionally, the premiums for unemployment benefits, employment stability, and vocational competency development for foreign regular employees grew from 92,917 million won in 2021 to 177,276 million won last year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.