From June 28, Age Calculated by Full Age... Ministry of Government Legislation and Ministry of the Interior Hold Policy Forum Today

Revised Civil Act and Framework Act on Administrative Regulations to Take Effect on the 28th of Next Month

With the enforcement of the 'Unified Age Calculation by Full Age' law scheduled for the 28th of next month, the government has arranged a forum to directly hear public opinions for promotional purposes.

The Ministry of Legislation, together with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, will hold the 42nd Policy Communication Forum on the 31st at 3 p.m. at the Seoul Policy Communication Forum space under the theme, "How can we successfully establish the full age system?"

On November 18 last year, a forum on "Unified Age Calculation and Social Settlement Measures" hosted by the Ministry of Government Legislation was held in the 2nd Seminar Room of the National Assembly Members' Office Building.

The unification of full age calculation is one of President Yoon Seok-yeol's election pledges aimed at resolving confusion and various legal and administrative disputes caused by the coexistence of multiple age calculation methods in Korea.

Until now, three age calculation methods?'Korean age' (Seneun nai), 'year age' (Yeon nai), and 'full age' (Man nai)?have been used interchangeably in Korea. However, internationally, the 'full age' system, which starts at 0 at birth and adds one year on each birthday, is commonly used.

Accordingly, the government revised the Civil Act and the Framework Act on Administration last December to unify age calculation under the 'full age' system. The law will take effect from the 28th of next month.

First, Article 158 of the Civil Act (Starting Point of Age), which previously only stipulated that "the date of birth shall be included in age calculation," was amended to state, "Age shall be calculated by including the date of birth and expressed in full age (Man nai) in years. However, if the age is less than one year, it may be expressed in months." The title of the article was also changed to Article 158 (Calculation and Expression of Age).

Additionally, Article 7-2 (Calculation and Expression of Age in Administration) was newly established in the Framework Act on Administration, stating that "Unless otherwise specified by other laws and regulations, age in administration shall be calculated by including the date of birth and expressed in full age (Man nai) in years. However, if the age is less than one year, it may be expressed in months."

Citizens, who have experienced various confusions and inconveniences in daily life, are looking forward to the implementation of the unified 'full age' system. On the other hand, concerns and interests have been raised about whether the 'full age' system can be stably established in Korea, where age-based hierarchical culture exists, and whether it might cause new confusions.

This forum was organized to gather opinions from experts, citizens, and social workers on the difficulties and improvements related to 'full age' experienced in daily life, aiming to develop policy alternatives. The forum will be broadcast live on the YouTube channel 'Policy Communication Forum.'

At the forum, Bang Geuk-bong, Director of the Legislative Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Legislation, will introduce the topic, and Gu Bon-gyu, Head of the Administrative Legislation Innovation Promotion Team, will explain the "Current Status of the Full Age Unification Policy."

Following this, Professor Kim Nam-cheol from Yonsei University Law School will present on the "Background and Establishment Measures of Full Age Unification," and Professor Bang Dong-hee from Pusan National University Law School will discuss the "Direction for Revising Year Age Regulations."

The forum will also provide an opportunity for citizens to participate directly and freely speak about improvements related to the use of 'full age' in daily life.

Finally, a Q&A session will be held on-site with the presenters and officials from the Ministry of Legislation, Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, Military Manpower Administration, Ministry of Personnel Management, and Ministry of the Interior and Safety. There will also be a chance to discuss necessary system improvements through the YouTube live chat.

An official from the Ministry of Legislation stated, "The various public opinions proposed at this Policy Communication Forum will be finalized into policy proposals through in-depth discussions (forums), reviewed by the relevant ministries, and reflected in policies."

The results of policy proposals and policy reflections can be checked on the 'On Gukmin Sotong' website.

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