Yongsan-gu's 'Welfare Benefit Text Notification Service' Receives High Resident Satisfaction

Integrated Survey Schedule and Contact Information for Applicants of National Basic Livelihood Security Livelihood, Medical, and Housing Benefits Sent via Text... Expected to Enhance Residents' Right to Know and Improve Civil Service Satisfaction

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] Yongsan-gu (District Mayor Seong Jang-hyun) is attracting attention by implementing a text notification service during the integrated welfare benefit investigation process.

The service targets applicants for the National Basic Livelihood Security Program’s livelihood, medical, and housing benefits.

When the community service center receives benefit applications from residents and forwards them to the district office, the district assigns an investigator and sends a text message to the resident with the upcoming schedule (income and property investigation, housing investigation, support obligor investigation process), along with the name and contact information of the district office staff in charge.

Previously, the district notified residents via text messages through the civil administration system about the receipt of benefit-related civil complaints and the start of investigations. However, the messages were too brief, often causing curiosity about how the investigation was actually being conducted.

A district official said, “We will send an additional message containing detailed information to minimize residents’ questions,” adding, “If necessary, residents can directly contact the district staff to inquire about the progress.”

The integrated investigation is a procedure that comprehensively reviews the documents submitted by residents applying for welfare benefits, public data from the Social Security Information System (Happy e-um), and the applicant’s work ability to determine eligibility for benefits.

The investigation covers more than 20 categories, including the National Basic Livelihood Security Program, Seoul-type Basic Security System, single-parent families, basic pension, disability pension, Seoul-type paid sick leave, and elementary to high school education expenses.

The processing period is within 30 to 60 days, involving verification through Happy e-um, the Administrative Information Joint Use Center, report data confirmation, and home visit consultations.

Last year, the district investigated 5,487 households, of which 4,142 households (75.5%) were deemed “eligible” and 1,345 households (24.5%) “ineligible.” Only those judged eligible can receive benefits from the district.

This year, the district will also thoroughly manage integrated investigations, eligibility decisions, and social security benefit payments according to the revised standards.

In 2020, the median income for a four-person household (the midpoint of national income) was 4,749,174 KRW, a 2.94% increase from the previous year (4,610,000 KRW). Eligibility is determined if the household’s recognized income amount is below a certain percentage of the median income.

As the support obligor criteria have been relaxed according to government guidelines, the number of welfare benefit recipients is expected to increase significantly this year as well.

Even if the investigation results in an ineligible judgment, the district plans to minimize welfare blind spots by linking to welfare benefits available under other laws or private services.

Seong Jang-hyun, Mayor of Yongsan-gu, said, “The district is paying great attention to ensure that residents do not miss out on essential welfare benefits,” adding, “The newly introduced text notification service will satisfy residents’ right to know and improve satisfaction with civil complaint handling.”

Welfare Investigation Division (☎2199-7219)

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.