Reclusive Youth Also Included in Government Support... Passed Cabinet Meeting

Ministry of Gender Equality and Family Reviews and Adopts Partial Amendment to Enforcement Decree of Youth Welfare Support Act

From now on, reclusive youth will also be included as at-risk youth and eligible for government support.

On the 11th, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced that the partial amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Youth Welfare Support Act, which includes this content, was passed at the Cabinet meeting held at the Yongsan Government Complex in Seoul.

According to the amendment, reclusive youth have been added to the special support targets for at-risk youth, along with youth at risk of delinquency and deviation, out-of-school youth, and youth who do not receive substantial protection from their guardians.

This measure was prepared as a follow-up to the "High-Risk Youth Support Enhancement Plan (focused on youth suicide and self-harm prevention)" announced in November last year, to support the psychological and emotional stability and healthy growth of reclusive youth who are at high risk of entering a high-risk state.

Special support for at-risk youth is a system that provides cash and goods such as living support, medical expenses, psychological testing and counseling fees, and academic support expenses to at-risk youth aged 9 to 24 who are socially and economically disadvantaged, according to Article 14 of the Youth Welfare Support Act.

Reclusive youth may experience delayed physical growth due to irregular lifestyles and unbalanced nutrition intake, and are likely to face mental difficulties such as depression due to loss of social roles and delayed adaptation, making active support important.

Meanwhile, the method of income verification, which previously used health insurance premium payment amounts, has been changed to an income recognition evaluation that investigates income and assets, through the amendment of the Enforcement Rules of the Youth Welfare Support Act.

In addition, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family has relaxed the selection criteria for special support recipients from 65% to 100% of the median income, allowing more at-risk youth to receive support.

Applications for special support for at-risk youth can be submitted by the youth themselves, guardians, youth counselors, social workers, teachers, or others who know the youth in need of support to the administrative welfare center of their address. The city, county, or district then decides the recipients, duration, and type of support through the Youth Welfare Deliberation Committee.

Kim Hyun-sook, Minister of Gender Equality and Family, said, "Special support for at-risk youth is a system to help the healthy growth of at-risk youth, including reclusive youth who need social and economic support," and added, "We will strengthen integrated support from discovering at-risk youth in blind spots through the local community youth social safety net to confirmation and case management."

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