Extension of 'Fishing Crew Insurance Premiums for April-June' Payment Deadline by 3 Months to Overcome COVID-19

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries announced on the 12th that the payment deadline for the fishermen's accident compensation insurance premiums, which will be imposed from April to June this year, will be extended by three months. This is to support fishermen who are experiencing difficulties due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

This measure follows the decision made at the 3rd Emergency Economic Meeting held on the 30th of last month to defer or reduce the payment of the four major insurance premiums for low-income groups, small and medium-sized enterprises below a certain scale, and small business owners. Accordingly, the payment deadline for approximately 13.9 billion KRW in insurance premiums imposed from April to June will be extended by three months until July to September.

The support targets are those enrolled in the fishermen's accident compensation insurance, a type of social insurance under the Fisheries Policy Insurance, covering 14,614 fishing vessels whose owners subscribed to the insurance by March 2020.

The fishermen's accident compensation insurance is an industrial accident compensation insurance (industrial accident insurance) in the fishing industry, aimed at protecting fishermen, where the vessel owner pays the premiums and fishermen who suffer accidents receive insurance benefits. This insurance is a personal insurance protecting the life and body of fishermen boarding vessels, and owners of fishing vessels over 3 tons are required to subscribe mandatorily.

Fishing vessel owners who wish to receive support can apply by visiting the first affiliated Suhyup cooperative or branch office where they joined, bringing their ID cards, from the 16th of this month until May 15th.

Lee Kyung-gyu, Director of Fisheries Policy at the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, said, "We expect that the extension of the payment deadline for fishermen's accident compensation insurance premiums will help alleviate the management burden of fishermen who are struggling due to COVID-19, even if only slightly."

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