(Image: Kobiz Media)
SEOUL, Dec. 17 (Korea Bizwire) — The welfare ministry said Monday it is reviewing a regulatory change that would allow divorcees to claim part of the national pension received by their ex-spouses after just one year of marriage.
Eligibility for pension sharing currently comes with a number of prerequisites, including minimum five years in marriage and that the subscribed spouse live to the required recipient age of 60 to 65. The ex-spouse also needs to have subscribed to the pension for at least 10 years.
Ministry officials said the proposed revisions would allow divorcees to ask for part of the spouse’s pension if the marriage lasted for a year or longer.
The changed regulations will also introduce immediate sharing of the pension by calculating the benefits at the time of the separation. The measure is aimed at preventing disputes over the amount from the gap in the year of the divorce and the year when pension benefits begin.
The revisions reflect a growing number of people getting divorced in their senior years. Ministry data showed that as of June this year, 27,440 people were getting their ex-spouse’s pension, a big increase from 4,632 in 2010.
(Yonhap)
