Kim Hyun-bin began his journalism career at Arirang TV from 2012 to 2017, specializing in defense, foreign affairs and the economy. In 2018, he joined The Korea Times, covering society and business, and is currently responsible for embassy affairs.
Seoul boosts fertility treatment support by 77% to tackle low birthrate
City government abolishes age-based requirements to receive fertility treatment subsidies
The number of fertility treatments subsidized by the Seoul city government surged by 77 percent last year, following a decision to eliminate income requirements for accessing the subsidies to address the declining birthrate the country faces.
To expand its initiatives, the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) intends to abolish age-based discrepancies in subsidy amounts and remove residency period requirements, beginning this year.
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By Kim Hyun-bin
According to preliminary data from Statistics Korea, the capital city had the lowest fertility rate, measured by the average number of children a woman has during her lifetime, at 0.55 last year compared to other local governments. The country's total fertility rate stood at 0.72.
City officials said on Sunday that the number of fertility treatments, including IVF (in vitro fertilization), subsidized by the city government, surged from 20,096 in 2022 to 35,567 last year.
Previously, couples grappling with infertility with a household income of 180 percent or less than the median income were eligible for up to 1.1 million won ($833) per treatment session. The 180 percent of the median income for a two-person household stood at about 6.2 million won per month last year.
The dramatic increase in the number of subsidized fertility treatments was mainly attributed to the city government's removal of the income criterion in July last year.
Starting this year, the city government plans to remove the condition requiring residency of at least six months, enabling residents to apply for support solely based on their Seoul residency at the time of application. This adjustment aims to address concerns regarding treatment continuity for individuals relocating from other regions.
In addition, the city government will increase the number of subsidized treatments per couple from 22 to 25 and eliminate age-based differences in subsidy size.
Previously, individuals under 45 received subsidies ranging from 300,000 won to 1.1 million, while those over 45 received reduced subsidies ranging from 200,000 won and 900,000 won respectively.
"We have abolished age-based requirements around the age of 45, ensuring that older individuals struggling with infertility receive the same level of support as others, aiming to alleviate the economic burden on older infertile couples striving to have children," an SMG official said.
The expansion of infertility support is expected to proceed upon approval by the Ministry of Health and Welfare.