Civic group members stage a rally in front of the National Assembly, Seoul on Oct. 8, 2018 to protest against deadbeat dads. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Jan. 6 (Korea Bizwire) — Parents who fail to provide child rearing expenses despite court rulings subjecting them to temporary incarceration in case of violation will from now on be subject to criminal punishment, exposure of their personal records and a ban on foreign travel.
The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced Tuesday that a new bill incorporating the aforementioned penalties had recently been passed.
The new bill, taking effect in July, allows recipients of child rearing expenses to call upon the ministry to intervene if the expenses are not being paid.
The government will then offer the debtor a grace period of three months to come up with an explanation before their name, age, occupation, and address are published on the internet.
The gender equality minister can directly ask authorities to impose a ban on foreign travel if necessary.
Any debtor that fails to pay child rearing expenses within 12 months after being sentenced to temporary incarceration will also be subject to a prison sentence of one year or fine of 10 million won (US$9,200).
Last year, the government passed a separate bill that suspends a driver’s license if the debtor fails to pay child rearing expenses despite being sentenced to temporary incarceration.
H. M. Kang (hmkang@koreabizwire.com)
