Seoul City to Fully Digitize Childcare Center Accounting Documents Starting September

Upgrade of 'Seoul City Childcare Center Management System' to Fully Implement Paperless Accounting Document Digitization
Automatic Linking of Transaction Details Such as Card Receipts When Registering Expenses... Also Registrable via Smartphone App

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Metropolitan Government has upgraded the accounting management program for daycare centers, the ‘Seoul Childcare Center Management System,’ and will fully digitize daycare center accounting management starting in September. This is expected to significantly reduce the administrative burden on childcare teachers, allowing them to focus more on childcare.

On the 30th, Seoul announced that the system has been upgraded so that when daycare centers register expenditure details in the ‘Seoul Childcare Center Management System,’ sales receipts from credit cards used for the expenditures and account transaction details are automatically linked.

From September, accounting-related ledgers and supporting documents such as receipts, which were previously printed and stored as paper documents, can be stored and managed electronically within the ‘Seoul Childcare Center Management System.’ Accounting documents can be easily registered anytime and anywhere not only on PCs but also through the smartphone app ‘Seoul Childcare Accounting.’

Additionally, the accounting inspections conducted through on-site visits by district offices will be converted to a non-face-to-face method using the ‘Seoul Childcare Center Management System.’ This will reduce the burden of on-site inspections for childcare teachers, and district officials will be able to focus on facility and safety inspections on-site, improving work efficiency.

This full digitization of daycare center accounting tasks follows the city’s various supports, such as personnel cost subsidies, to allow daycare centers to concentrate solely on childcare activities. It responds to requests from the childcare field. Mayor Oh Se-hoon, during a meeting with the ‘Seoul Childcare Center Association’ in June, reflected voices from the field emphasizing the need to improve the working environment of childcare staff to enhance the quality of childcare services, and is promoting simplification of daycare center tasks accordingly.

Seoul plans to have a pilot operation period until the end of this year to help each daycare center adapt to the digitization of accounting documents, and from next year, electronic accounting documents will be mandatory. During the pilot period, the city will conduct extensive promotion of the system to daycare centers through the 25 district offices and provide training on using the ‘Seoul Childcare Center Management System.’ Video manuals on how to use the system will also be distributed.

Starting in 2023, through system advancement, a function will be added to notify daycare centers of suspected accounting violations that are being improperly handled. This aims to encourage daycare centers to self-correct errors caused by lack of awareness of laws and guidelines, supporting transparent accounting execution.

Moreover, Seoul plans to establish a comprehensive plan within the year to simplify daycare center administrative tasks to reduce the workload on childcare teachers caused by various administrative duties beyond essential childcare tasks.

Seoul will operate an online public forum until the 12th of next month to collect opinions from childcare teachers and citizens. Based on the opinions gathered in the forum and from the childcare field, the city will formulate a comprehensive plan.

Kim Seon-soon, Director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Women and Family Policy Office, said, “A society that takes good care of caregivers is a mature society,” and added, “We will create a working environment where childcare staff at daycare centers can focus solely on caregiving, fostering a childcare environment where both children and teachers are happy.”

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