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South Korean Government Offers Marriage Incentives in South Korea to Address Birth Crisis. Understand Why South Korean Youth Are Ignoring Bonuses to Marry.
Marriage Incentive Program: With US$ 14,000 — about R$ 80,000, it is possible to pay off debts, invest in a small business, or even take a few months to travel the world. However, this amount has not been enough to convince young people in South Korea to get married and start families. The country, which faces one of the worst birth crises in the world, is trying to reverse this scenario with financial incentive policies, but the results continue to frustrate the government.
Among the most recent measures is the bonus for young marriages in South Korea, offered as an attempt to stimulate unions and thus increase the birth rate — which has been in free fall for years. Even with what are considered high values, the program has low uptake and exposes a deeper problem: cultural changes, high professional pressure, high living costs, and a growing reluctance to form traditional families.
In this article, we explain how the marriage incentive works in South Korea, why the bonus is not working, and what this crisis reveals about the country’s demographic future.
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Understand the Marriage Incentive Program in South Korea
In its effort to pull out of the demographic hole it has been in for some years, the country has not hesitated to open its wallet. Its reasoning is simple; if birth rates are encouraged with money, the government is willing to offer it.
In recent months, the country’s authorities have proposed giving checks to citizens, offering tax incentives to families with children, expanding parental leave, and even ensuring that new mothers have access to selected food items.
Another of the country’s major bets has been to bring together young South Koreans. This has involved creating programs intended for singles to find love and making things easier on the economic front, offering money so that the cost of a romantic dinner is not an obstacle. In South Korea, relationships and birth rates go hand in hand. So much so that less than 5% of babies are born out of wedlock.
A large part of the marriage bonus programs in the country comes from regional authorities, leading to varying scenarios from one region to another. However, a quick search online reveals news of cities or districts attempting to boost birth rates with expensive matchmaking programs.
Program Offers R$ 80,000 to Young South Koreans
In Busan, one of the main metropolitan areas in South Korea that is experiencing the effects of the demographic crisis intensely, the government decided to bless new couples with hundreds of dollars.
This way, money ceases to be an obstacle to having a relationship. In June, The Korea Herald reported that one of Busan’s districts, Saha-gu, had plans for a project for those born in 1981 and 2001, offering R$ 2,000 just for “matching” with someone.
In other words, each couple that left the event hand in hand with plans to meet again would have R$ 4,000 to invest in their romance. This R$ 2,000 per person is just part of the program.
The idea was to increase support as the relationship progressed, eventually leading to the great wedding gift, about R$ 80,000 for couples saying “I do.” The district even expressed a willingness to offer newlyweds a larger upfront amount if they decided to buy property or helped them with rent.
Understand Why the Marriage Bonus Did Not Work
According to The Wall Street Journal, even the marriage incentive in South Korea cannot get young South Koreans to marry. Despite the promise of receiving a US$ 14,000 marriage bonus, the regional program has not been very successful. TWSJ states that no participants have claimed this reward.
The newspaper cites a recent survey showing that three-fifths of the employed population do not see any issue in remaining unmarried, a factor compounded by other economic issues such as long working hours, rising living costs, and the difficulty of raising children in a society marked by high levels of demand and competitiveness.
Another point is the difficulties women face in returning to the workforce after maternity. In fact, there are dating programs that have been suspended precisely because they could not bring together a sufficient number of interested women. Other young people simply choose not to apply due to the heavy bureaucracy that comes with such initiatives.
Yo me anoto si dan a conocer una surcoreana bonita
Si es en verdad