[News Today] 2nd fuel price relief payments begin

[LEAD]

The second round of high fuel price relief payments begins today. About 36 million people in the bottom 70 percent income bracket are eligible, based on national health insurance premiums.

Depending on where they live, recipients can receive between 100,000 won and 250,000 won.

[REPORT]

The first round of high fuel price relief payments has been paid to more than 2.94 million vulnerable people.

The second round began Monday for about 36 million people in the bottom 70 percent income bracket.

Applications are open until July 3, and about 280,000 people who did not apply in the first round can also apply during this period.

The payment is 100,000 won (USD 67) for the capital region and 150,000 won (USD 100) for areas outside it.

In depopulation areas, the amount is 200,000 won (USD 133) for 49 preferential support areas and 250,000 won (USD 167) for 40 special support areas.

Eligibility is determined by the combined national health insurance premiums of each household as of March this year.

For employee insurance holders, a single-income four-person household can qualify with premiums of 320,000 won or less, while a dual-income household qualifies at 390,000 won or less. Regional subscribers must pay 220,000 won or less to qualify.

However, some 2.5 million people with high assets will be excluded even if they meet the insurance premium criteria.

They are those whose combined property tax assessment value exceeded KRW 1.2 billion last year or whose financial income was above KRW 20 million in 2024.

Those who want to receive their payments through a credit or debit card can apply on the card company's website or app, or by visiting a bank branch.

Those who want to receive the payments as paper-type regional vouchers or prepaid cards can visit an administrative welfare center.

To prevent congestion, this week applications will be received on the designated days of the week according to the last digit of applicants' birth years.