"More Visitors Than Residents"... Visiting Population in Areas Experiencing Population Decline Is 4.6 Times the Registered Population

Ministry of the Interior and Safety Releases Q2 Resident Population Assessment for Areas Experiencing Population Decline
First Release of Data for 18 Areas of Interest Regarding Population Decline
"Resident Population Scale and Inflow Characteristics Made Easy to Understand"

As of June this year, the resident population in areas experiencing population decline in Korea was approximately 27.2 million. Among them, the "registered population" was 4.86 million, while the "visiting population" reached 22.34 million, a difference of about 4.6 times. This demonstrates that the actual vitality of these regions relies heavily on the influx of people from outside.

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced these findings in its "2025 Q2 Resident Population Assessment for Areas Experiencing Population Decline."

Ministry of the Interior and Safety

The concept of resident population includes not only those who permanently reside in an area but also those who stay temporarily and contribute to its vitality. In accordance with the Special Act on Support for Areas Experiencing Population Decline, the resident population of 89 such areas has been assessed since last year. Starting from the second quarter, the scope of assessment has been expanded from areas experiencing population decline to areas of interest regarding population decline.

The total resident population in all areas experiencing population decline was about 25.23 million in April, 31.36 million in May, and 27.2 million in June. This shows an overall increase compared to the previous quarter; however, compared to the same period last year, May saw an increase, while April and June saw decreases.

In particular, in six regions-Ongjin in Incheon, Gapyeong in Gyeonggi, Yangyang, Goseong, and Pyeongchang in Gangwon, and Taean in South Chungcheong-the visiting population exceeded ten times the registered population on a quarterly average basis.

Compared to the same period last year, the regions with the largest increase in resident population in May were Gapyeong in Gyeonggi, Dong-gu in Busan, Gochang in North Jeolla, and Gongju and Taean in South Chungcheong, in that order.

Looking at the characteristics of the visiting population, the average length of stay in June was 3.2 days, with an average stay time of 11.7 hours. The proportion of visitors residing in other cities or provinces reached 68.5%. The average card spending per person among the visiting population in June was 119,000 won, while it was 124,000 won in April and 117,000 won in May. Notably, those who stayed for longer periods spent more on average across all industries, with particularly high expenditures in education and healthcare compared to other groups.

Starting this year, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety has also released, for the first time, resident population data for 18 areas of interest regarding population decline, including Geumjeong-gu in Busan, Iksan in North Jeolla, Gyeongju in North Gyeongsang, and Tongyeong in South Gyeongsang.

In addition, in collaboration with the National Data Office, the ministry plans to provide visualized data on the scale and inflow characteristics of resident populations in areas experiencing population decline through the "National Data Office Data Utilization" website. The newly introduced resident population visualization system is designed to help anyone intuitively understand changes in movement and stays between regions, and it aims to support local governments in planning and developing more sophisticated policies.

Kim Minjae, Vice Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, stated, "We will continue to provide more useful data and analysis to support local governments in establishing effective regional revitalization policies."

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