Seongnam City's ALL-Pass Program Reaches 20,000 Beneficiaries in 4 Years... "A Strong Stepping Stone for Youth Employment"

Seongnam City’s ALL-Pass Program Surpasses 21,877 Beneficiaries
Total Support Reaches 6.4 Billion Won, Moving Beyond Simple Cash Welfare
Focusing on Youth Competency Building With a ‘Pre-Investment, Post-Support’ Model
Robust Support of up

The 'ALL-Pass' program, an employment support initiative for unemployed youth in Seongnam City, Gyeonggi Province (Mayor: Shin Sang-jin), has established itself as a practical, competency investment-oriented policy that is visibly lowering the barriers to employment for young people.

Seongnam City Hall, provided by Seongnam City

On April 13, Seongnam City announced that, since the launch of the ALL-Pass program up to the first quarter of this year, a cumulative total of 21,877 people have benefited from the initiative, with total financial support amounting to 6.4 billion won. Reviewing the annual number of beneficiaries highlights the program's rapid growth.

Since its initial launch in 2023, the ALL-Pass program has seen significant increases in the number of beneficiaries each year: 2,501 people and 1 billion won in 2023; 6,598 people and 2 billion won in 2024; 10,557 people and 2.8 billion won in 2025; and 2,221 people and 600 million won in the first quarter of 2026. This demonstrates the continuous expansion of voluntary participation among young people.

Previously, Seongnam City's basic youth income was introduced to improve young people's welfare and strengthen their employability, but critics pointed out that the actual usage leaned heavily toward grocery and leisure expenses, limiting the policy's effectiveness.

Indeed, an analysis of Seongnam City's basic youth income in 2019 found that the main areas of expenditure were groceries and dining out (41.6%), followed by clothing and beauty (31.6%). Additionally, a review of expenditures over three and a half years after the introduction of the basic youth income revealed some instances of spending outside the policy's intended purpose, such as about 381 million won at PC rooms, approximately 147 million won at jewelry shops, and nearly 20 million won at liquor retailers.

In contrast, the ALL-Pass program does not provide cash payments directly. Instead, it adopts a "pre-investment, post-support" structure, where young people first pay for exam registration or course enrollment and are then reimbursed. This effectively blocks the possibility of using the budget for unrelated purposes, making the process of building competencies the core of the policy.

The structural strengths of this approach were clearly confirmed in a recent in-depth interview (FGI) conducted by the Seongnam Policy Research Institute with young participants of the ALL-Pass program.

Participants highlighted the reduction of both financial and psychological burdens as key advantages. With exam fees for language tests such as TOEIC and OPIc ranging from 50,000 to 90,000 won per attempt, the ability to retake exams without significant financial strain allowed them to challenge themselves more proactively.

For example, one participant reported that after receiving support from ALL-Pass, their OPIc grade improved from IM2 (Level 4) to IH (Level 2), and their TOEIC score rose to the high 890s. The participants commented, "Thanks to the support, we were able to take exams consistently, which led to improved scores and offered substantial help in preparing for employment."

Young people especially viewed ALL-Pass not as a one-time subsidy, but as a purpose-driven policy directly linked to job preparation and self-development. The requirement to provide proof after taking exams or completing courses not only aligns with the intent of the policy but also enables participants to prepare more responsibly while reducing financial strain. This has generated a positive response.

Seongnam City explained that, while a lump-sum payment could lead to short-term consumption, the ALL-Pass program focuses on supporting the acquisition of qualifications and the enhancement of employment competitiveness, laying the groundwork for medium- to long-term self-reliance.

A city official stated, "Based on the results of this in-depth interview, we plan to simplify the application process and improve the policy's completeness, while reducing inconveniences experienced by young people and further strengthening the tangible employment support offered."

Eligibility for ALL-Pass support is limited to unemployed youth who, as of the application date, have been registered residents of Seongnam City for at least one year and are between the ages of 19 and 39 (born between 1986 and 2007). The program provides support for exam fees and academy tuition for a total of 1,011 types of qualifications, including 20 language tests, 542 national technical certifications, 96 nationally recognized private certifications (such as Artificial Intelligence Competency Evaluation (AICE) and computerized tax accounting), and 352 national professional certifications. Applications can be submitted for both online and offline courses, and the program can be used without limit on the number of times, within a 1 million won limit. For low-income youth such as basic livelihood security recipients, the maximum support amount is increased to 2 million won.

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