The insurance examples use 2026 rates and the NPS income ceiling effective from July 2026. Actual deductions can differ due to rounding and reconciliation. Recheck applicable rates for any 2027 payslip. Official guidance
If the amount hitting your bank account each month doesn’t match the salary your company quoted, the answer lives in your Korean payslip deductions. The four social insurances (national pension, health insurance, employment insurance, industrial accident insurance) plus income tax and local income tax are pulled automatically every month. This 2026 guide walks through every line on a Korean payslip and gives you a five-minute self-check so you know whether what’s deducted is actually correct.
Korean Payslip Deductions at a Glance (2026)
A Korean payslip is split into a payment block and a deduction block. The payment block lists base salary, meal allowance, and other supplements. The deduction block contains the four social insurances and the taxes the company withholds on your behalf. In 2026, almost every full-time worker sees the following seven lines.
| Deduction | Employee rate (2026) | Base | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Pension | 4.75% | Standard monthly income | 4 insurances · retirement |
| Health Insurance | 3.595% | Monthly remuneration | 4 insurances · medical |
| Long-term Care | 13.14% of health premium | Health insurance premium | Add-on to health |
| Employment Insurance | 0.9% | Monthly remuneration | 4 insurances · unemployment |
| Industrial Accident | 0% (employer pays all) | — | 4 insurances · accident |
| Income Tax | Per simplified tax table | Salary · dependents | National tax |
| Local Income Tax | 10% of income tax | Withheld income tax | Local tax |
Even with the same gross salary, take-home pay can swing by 50,000 to 150,000 KRW depending on the number of dependents, non-taxable allowances (the 200,000 KRW meal allowance, commuting allowance, etc.), and your company’s pay structure. Reviewing the actual payslip once a month is the foundation for managing both your retirement contributions and year-end tax refund.
National Pension: The Largest Korean Payslip Deduction
For 2026, the national pension contribution totals 9.5%, split as 4.75% each for employee and employer. The standard monthly income bounds are KRW 410,000–6,590,000 from July 2026 through June 2027. The published phase-in raises the 2027 total to 10% (5% employee), so do not reuse the 2026 examples unchanged.
- Monthly salary 3 million KRW → employee pension 142,500 KRW
- Monthly salary 5 million KRW → employee pension 237,500 KRW
- Monthly salary 7 million KRW (above the cap) → capped near 313,025 KRW
High earners stop paying once they hit the upper limit. On the other hand, skipping pension contributions means losing access to old-age, disability, and survivor benefits. Foreign residents in Korea are still eligible (or required) to enroll depending on nationality and visa status, so check that the pension line actually appears on your payslip. For the wider four-insurance picture, see our Korea Tax & 4 Social Insurances Guide.
When Your Pension Deduction Suddenly Jumps
If your pension deduction suddenly increases around July, two things are usually behind it. First, your standard monthly income was refreshed using last year’s earnings. Second, the temporary base used during your first year of employment got replaced with the official figure. Re-check the “standard monthly income” line with HR or on the National Pension Service portal.
Health and Long-term Care Insurance: Two Lines for Medical Cover
Health and long-term care belong to the same four-insurance bucket but show up as separate lines. The 2026 health insurance rate is 7.19% of monthly remuneration, half of which (3.595%) is the employee share. Long-term care is an add-on equal to 13.14% of the health insurance premium, used to fund care for seniors aged 65+ and patients with age-related conditions.
- Monthly salary 3 million KRW → health ~107,850 KRW + long-term care ~14,172 KRW
- Monthly salary 5 million KRW → health ~179,750 KRW + long-term care ~23,620 KRW
- The employer matches the same amount (so total cost is roughly double)
Health insurance is more than a generic insurance product. In Korean medical billing, an enrolled member typically pays only 60-80% of what an uninsured patient would pay for the same procedure. Our 2026 Foreigner Hospital Cost Guide compares insured vs. uninsured bills with concrete examples.
When the April Payslip Shows a Health Insurance Reconciliation
April payslips often include a “health insurance reconciliation” line. This adjusts the gap between the prior year’s reported total compensation and what was actually withheld. A big bonus year usually triggers extra payment in April, while a smaller compensation year results in a refund. If your take-home looks unusually different in April, this is the line to check first.
Employment and Industrial Accident: The Smallest Lines
Employment insurance funds unemployment benefits and vocational training. The employee rate is 0.9% of monthly remuneration, the smallest of the four social insurances. The employer adds another 0.9% plus an industry-specific extra (0.25-0.85%).
- Monthly salary 3 million KRW → employment insurance ~27,000 KRW
- Monthly salary 5 million KRW → employment insurance ~45,000 KRW
- Industrial accident insurance is 0 KRW for the employee — usually not shown, or shown as zero
Industrial accident insurance is fully employer-paid, so the deduction is invisible on the employee side. If a workplace incident or commuting accident happens, medical bills, downtime payments, and disability benefits are paid out of the company’s industrial accident pool.
Employment and industrial accident look the smallest day to day, but they are the safety nets that activate first when unemployment or a workplace accident actually hits.
Income Tax and Local Income Tax: Korean Payslip Deductions That Are Not Insurance
Income tax and local income tax sit at the bottom of the deduction block. Unlike the four social insurances, these are taxes — income tax is a national tax and local income tax is a municipal tax. Each month the company uses the simplified tax table to estimate the withholding, and the gap with the actual tax is reconciled at the year-end tax settlement the following February.
| Withholding check | Required inputs |
|---|---|
| NTS simplified tax table | Payment year, taxable monthly pay, eligible dependents and child conditions |
| Employer setting | 80%, 100% or 120% withholding choice |
| Reconcile | Compare the employer inputs with the actual amount withheld |
The table above does not promise a fixed tax amount. Allowances are excluded only when their non-taxable conditions are met. Calculate withholding from the NTS table for the payment year and the individual circumstances. Related: 2026 Korea Income Tax Guide for Foreigners
When Your Company Withholds Too Much or Too Little
The simplified tax table offers three withholding levels: 80%, 100%, or 120%. Pick 120% if you prefer a larger year-end refund, 80% if you want a bigger monthly take-home. Change it by submitting a new “earned income deduction declaration” to HR or directly through Hometax. If you are new to year-end settlement, start with our Year-End Tax Settlement Beginner Guide (2025 income · 2026 filing).
Korean Payslip Deductions: 5-Minute Self-Check
The seven checks below let you verify your monthly deductions in five minutes. Save your payslip as PDF and walk through each step.
- Total payments = pre-tax salary. Check whether non-taxable items (meal, commuting) are listed separately.
- National pension ≈ standard monthly income × 4.75%. Confirm the July refresh and whether you hit the cap.
- Health insurance ≈ remuneration × 3.595%, long-term care ≈ health × 13.14%. The two lines should match each other.
- Employment insurance ≈ remuneration × 0.9%. Industrial accident should be 0 or absent.
- Income tax should reflect your reported dependents and non-taxable allowances. If dependents went up but the tax did not drop, declarations may be missing.
- Local income tax = income tax × 10%. Differences in the hundreds usually point to a calculation error.
- Take-home = total payments − total deductions. The bank deposit must match the payslip down to the won.
If any line breaks down, contact HR, the National Pension Service (1355), the National Health Insurance Service (1577-1000), the Korea Workers’ Compensation & Welfare Service (1588-0075), or the Hometax helpline (126). Foreign workers can use multilingual support when Korean is hard. Common refund mistakes are documented in Top 10 Foreigner Tax Refund Mistakes.
Korean Payslip Deductions FAQ
Q. Is it illegal if my payslip has no four-insurance lines?
For regular full-time employees, the four social insurances are mandatory and must appear on the payslip. However, daily workers under one month, part-timers under 60 hours per month, and freelancers paid as 3.3% business income are not all enrolled. First confirm whether your contract is a regular employment contract or a freelance contract.
Q. How can I tell if my company withheld but did not actually pay?
Log in to the National Pension Service or the National Health Insurance Service portal and check your enrollment history and payment records. If your payslip shows the deduction but the agency has no record, you can file a complaint with the labor inspector. Foreign workers can do the same with their alien registration card and identity verification, with multilingual support available.
Q. Can foreigners reclaim already-paid pension when leaving Korea?
Lump-sum refund eligibility depends on reciprocity, a relevant social security agreement or qualifying E-8/E-9/H-2 coverage. Do not assume that only employee contributions are refundable; have NPS confirm eligible periods, benefit amount and departure application requirements.
Q. Is severance (“retirement pension”) also a payslip deduction?
Statutory severance (one month per year of service) is funded by the employer as a separate cost and does not appear on the monthly payslip. If your company runs a DC-type retirement pension plan, a fixed amount may flow to an external trustee each month and some employers list it as a “retirement pension contribution” line. If you do not see it, it is not necessarily missing — confirm with HR.
Bottom Line: One Payslip Check a Month Is Enough
Korean payslip deductions look complex at first, but they are really five social insurance lines (pension, health, long-term care, employment, accident) plus two tax lines (income tax, local income tax). Open the PDF on payday and run the seven-step check above each month. That habit alone prevents most year-end refund surprises. Just remember that non-taxable allowances and dependent declarations need to be correct first, because they ripple through both the four insurances and the tax lines.
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- Korean Taxes: Understanding Taxes and Social Insurances in South Korea
- How to Master Korea year-end tax settlement for foreign residents 2025 Your Essential Guide
- Foreigner Income Tax Filing in Korea: Withholding & Comprehensive Return
- Top 10 foreigner tax savings Korea Mistakes to Avoid for a Bigger Refund
- Foreign NHIS Korea: Employee vs Regional Health Insurance Enrollment (2026)
Last updated: 23 September 2026
Coverage, premiums and eligibility differ by product and by date. This article is general information — it is not a recommendation to buy a particular policy and it does not guarantee any coverage. Read the policy documents before you sign up; for National Health Insurance, call 1577-1000.
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