'Disaster Emergency Living Expenses' Also Available to Foreign Residents Living in Seoul... Applications Accepted from the 31st

Seoul City Accepts National Human Rights Commission Recommendation... Prepaid Cards Usable Until December 15

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] Foreign residents living in Seoul can now receive Seoul City's emergency disaster living expenses under the same criteria as Korean nationals. Online applications will be accepted starting from the 31st.

Seoul City announced the plan to provide 'Emergency Disaster Living Expenses for Foreign Residents' on the 26th. This support follows the recommendation of the National Human Rights Commission to prevent 'infringement of equality rights due to unreasonable discrimination' by providing emergency disaster living expenses to foreign residents who are experiencing hardships similar to Korean nationals due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

The eligible recipients are foreign residents who have been registered (reported residence) in Seoul for more than 90 days as of August 27 and hold a legal status allowing employment or profit-making activities in Korea. Foreigners residing under student or general training visas, those engaged in industries not permitted by their visa, and illegal residents are excluded.

The income criteria and support amounts are the same as those applied to Korean citizens supported in March. Applicants must have an income at or below 100% of the median income (4-person household 기준 4,749,174 KRW, excluding general and financial assets), and depending on household size, those with 2 or fewer members receive 300,000 KRW, 3 to 4 members receive 400,000 KRW, and 5 or more members receive 500,000 KRW.

The payment method will be a single type of prepaid card for easy use by foreigners, which can be collected at designated locations in each autonomous district. The usage period is until December 15 of this year, and the card can be used throughout Seoul.

Previously, in March, Seoul City provided 542.3 billion KRW in emergency disaster living expenses to 1.6 million households, but most foreigners were excluded at that time, with only marriage immigrants and refugees included.

Foreign residents wishing to apply for the emergency disaster living expenses can submit applications online 24 hours a day until September 25 through the 'Seoul City Foreign Residents Emergency Disaster Living Expenses Support Website (http://fds.seoul.go.kr)'. Applications can also be submitted at 40 locations including Seoul's Global Centers and Migrant Women Counseling Centers, following a 5-day rotation system based on the last digit of the birth year.

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