Child Support for Single-Parent Families, Previously Ending at 18, Now Extended Until High School Graduation

Ministry of Gender Equality and Family Reviews and Approves 1st Basic Plan for Single-Parent Family Policy
Extension of Welfare Facility Stay for Single-Parent Families Up to 5 Years
Criminal Penalties Considered for Non-Custodial Parents Failing to Pay Child Support

Child-rearing expenses for single-parent families, which have been discontinued when the child turns 18, will now be continuously provided until the child graduates from high school. Sanctions against non-custodial parents who deliberately fail to pay child support will also be strengthened.

On the 10th, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family deliberated and approved the “1st Basic Plan for Single-Parent Family Policy” containing these details at the 3rd Social Relations Ministers’ Meeting.

This basic plan was prepared to support the government’s national policy direction of “strengthening welfare for the vulnerable” under the “Single-Parent Family Support Act” implemented in April 2021, and to fulfill the national agenda of “realizing a society where no one is left behind and all families are included.”

The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family structured this basic plan around four major tasks: ▲supporting the stable living of single-parent families ▲strengthening the responsibility of non-custodial parents for child-rearing ▲enhancing the self-reliance capacity of single parents ▲and establishing a support foundation for single-parent families.

Support for Stable Living of Single-Parent Families

First, to alleviate the economic burden of low-income single-parent families, livelihood support will be strengthened. The timing of child-rearing expense support, currently about 200,000 KRW per month for children under 18, will be expanded to cover until high school graduation. Along with this, measures to raise the income criteria for expanding the child-rearing expense support target will also be pursued. The criteria for issuing single-parent family certificates will be gradually raised, broadening the scope of support such as discounts on heating, electricity, gas, and water bills.

The government will also expand housing welfare support for low-income single-parent families. The basic admission period for welfare facilities for single-parent families will be extended from a maximum of 3 years to 5 years, and extension criteria will be relaxed. To this end, the supply of purchased rental housing will be continuously expanded, and single-parent families receiving benefits will be added to the priority supply targets for permanent rental housing. Additionally, income criteria for public rental housing support will be gradually raised for single-parent families.

Support for maintaining the health of single-parent families will also increase. The “Single-Parent Family Medical Insurance,” which fully covers medical insurance premiums for low-income single-parent families, will continue to be provided, and promotion efforts will be strengthened to ensure more people benefit. The age for medical expense support for pregnancy and childbirth for adolescent single parents will be gradually lowered, and psychological support for loneliness and depression will be enhanced.

Strengthening the Responsibility of Non-Custodial Parents for Child-Rearing

A support system will be established to encourage non-custodial parents to voluntarily fulfill child support obligations. Child support enforcement counseling services will be expanded to 244 family centers nationwide to improve accessibility, and the number of institutions providing visitation services to help fulfill child support obligations faithfully will be increased.

To identify the payment ability of child support debtors and shorten litigation periods, amendments to the “Child Support Enforcement Act” will be pursued to allow income or asset inquiries without the debtor’s consent. For non-custodial parents who deliberately fail to fulfill child support obligations, sanctions such as criminal penalties will be strengthened to increase compliance rates. Expansion of driver's license suspension as a penalty will also be pursued.

Enhancing Self-Reliance Capacity of Single Parents

Job training and employment support for single parents will be strengthened to improve vocational skills. For career and vocational education, cooperation with Polytechnics will be established, and single parents will be given priority selection as trainees and interns at Women’s New Employment Centers, providing customized vocational education considering their characteristics. Earned income tax credits and child tax credits will continue to be supported, and deductions for earned and business income will be maintained when calculating income criteria for selecting single-parent family support recipients.

Plans will also be made to ease the burden of child education and care to create a stable working environment. First, the number of institutions providing learning support services for children of single-parent families will be expanded from the current 98 to 244 family centers nationwide. For children (infants) of low-income single-parent families, priority admission opportunities to national and public kindergartens will be guaranteed, and if attending private kindergartens, additional tuition support of up to 200,000 KRW per month will be provided. Furthermore, additional government support for childcare service fees for low-income single-parent families will also be considered.

Academic support to cultivate the self-reliance capacity of single parents will be strengthened. Efforts will continue to allow academic deferment and leave of absence so that adolescent single parents do not drop out due to pregnancy or childbirth, and school counselors and entrusted education institutions will be linked to prevent school dropout. For adolescent single parents who have dropped out, various learning supports such as mentoring beyond academy lectures will be provided through connections with family centers or out-of-school youth support centers. Priority support for national scholarships and national work-study scholarships for single parents will continue, and adult customized re-education courses for lifelong education support will also be operated.

Establishing a Support Foundation for Single-Parent Families

The functions and roles of family centers, which serve as the service delivery system for single-parent family support, will be strengthened. Plans to expand customized case management service providers to family centers nationwide will be reviewed, and various welfare services will be provided by linking with integrated service providers for vulnerable and crisis families and children. Cooperation and linkage with related organizations will be increased to actively identify unmarried fathers and mothers.

Additionally, to prevent discrimination or unfair treatment against single-parent families, discriminatory elements in daily life and systems will be improved. Amendments to the Family Relations Registration Act, which effectively does not allow birth registration of biological fathers of children born out of wedlock, will be pursued, and procedures for child-rearing expense support for children of unmarried fathers and mothers before birth registration will be simplified. Continuous inspections will be conducted on laws, systems, mass media, and public services to identify discriminatory elements against single-parent families, and various campaigns and training for public institution workers to alleviate prejudice against single-parent families will be carried out.

Kim Hyun-sook, Minister of Gender Equality and Family, stated, “We deeply feel the state’s responsibility for single-parent families raising children under difficult circumstances, and have prepared a basic plan containing tasks to be pursued over the next five years to accompany and support single-parent families.” She emphasized, “We will faithfully implement this basic plan to create conditions where single-parent families can raise their children stably and become economically self-reliant.”

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