Give € 700 to those who marry

To complicated problems, Imaginative solutions. South Korean couples that give the ‘Yes I want’ in Seoul already know who will make them one of the most expensive gifts to celebrate the link: the metropolitan government. As part of their efforts to win population and alleviate the demographic crisis facing the country as a whole, local authorities have decided to bet on A peculiar measure: Give a check of almost 700 euros to couples who marry.

THE OBJECTIVE: Under its population.

Celebrating with seven figures. Giving the ‘Yes I want’ will be a little easier in the capital of South Korea. Or less expensive, at least. In your effort to fight The demographic crisis that hits the nation, the Seoul metropolitan government plans to deliver one million wonesabout 668 euros, to couples who formalize their marriage in the city.

According to Precise The press South Koreanlocal authorities have already contacted the Ministry of Health and Welfare to find a way to carry out the measure and how to make payments. His goal is that the aid can be distributed as of October and opt for them the bride and groom who have registered their link this year in the city. As long as, yes, they meet certain income requirements.

Objective: 20,000 couples. Local authorities have already made accounts and they will benefit from the measure around 20,000 couplesalthough they could be more. Right now the Metropolitan Government contemplates that the couples who officers their union this year in Seoul benefit from the aid, but also requires that they do not exceed a certain income.

To receive the check the total income of the couple must not exceed 150% of the average income. In Seoul they already consider however Open something else The hand and raise that maximum stop to 180%. There are two other unknowns about how the program will work: one is what will be the age limit for the beneficiaries, another is how exactly the million wones will be delivered. South Korean media talk that the sum could enter cash or at points that can be spent within the community itself.

And what is the purpose? Technically, make life a little easier for the newlyweds. The idea is to offer them A subsidy that allows them to buy appliances, furniture and other belongings that they need to form their own home. To understand why Seoul bets on such a measure, however, it is necessary serious crisis of birth rate with derivatives at a social, economic or even Defense subject.

The birth rate of South Korea is It has collapsed Over the last decades until it is located among the lowest of the entire planet. In fact, the demographic situation is so serious that At the end of last year The country was officially declared “aged”, a category that indicates that 20% of its population has already exceeded 65 years. Faced with such data to South Korea, no choice but to open A peculiar debate: Define what an old man is.

Faced with desperate problems … We said it before: imaginative solutions, which is what the Metropolitan Government of Seoul is now looking for. Its authorities want to boost the birth rate supporting couples, contributing to their expenses and encouraging them to root in the capital. The objective is ‘water’ shy green sprouts demographic registered in 2024, both local and national.

The latest official statistics show that in Seoul they were noted 38,568 births between January and November 2024, 5.1% more than during the same period of 2023; But the doubt of which, to what extent that percentage reveals a change in trend or is simply a mirage inherited from Covid, the result of couples who during the pandemic postponed their plans to marry or have babies. “The city government is closely reviewing the related measures to continue with the trend,” The administration indicates.

Adds and continues of measures. The nuptial voucher is an original measure, but not the only one that has been on the table over the last years in South Korea to encourage birth. Not long ago he even raised to create a Super baby check of 70,000 euros for that same purpose.

Other options that have been raised, in Seoul or the rest of the country, go through couples with a Municipal Program quotes, Improve food of mothers, hire foreign staff To facilitate reconciliation, give money to young people to encourage them to Leave home or even rethink the School planning.

The Survival Law. Not all cities seem to go as well as Seoul. Yesterday Financial Times dedicated A wide report Busan, a port city located south of Korea del, who faces a critical demographic panorama. Despite being The second most populous city from the country, between 1995 and 2023 lost 600,000 neighborsa trend that seems to accelerate as the population ages and seoul gains weight in the country’s economy.

Your situation is such that, According to the British newspaperlast year the Employment Information Service of South Korea classified the port city in the category of “risk of extinction”, which reveals its deep imbalance between the working population and the non -working and the threat of stopping be sustainable at the economic level.

Images | ONE-11 (Flickr) and Marie (Flickr)

In Xataka | South Korea has a huge solitude problem and a plan to fix it: 322 million dollars