[2025년도 예산안]
24 trillion won in spending restructuring due to sharp decline in tax revenue… SOC budget cut by 3.6%
National scholarship support for 75% of all college students
Newborn Special Loan Income Requirement Relaxed to 250 Million Won
The total budget expenditure for 2025 has been set at 677.4 trillion won, a 3.2% increase from this year’s 656.6 trillion won. Following last year’s record-low 2.8% expenditure increase, it appears that the austerity trend will continue next year.
The government held a Cabinet meeting on the 27th and finalized the 2025 budget plan with these contents. The fiscal deficit (management fiscal balance) for next year is expected to be 77.7 trillion won, which is about 2.8% of the gross domestic product (GDP).
According to the budget plan, the government will invest 10 trillion won in the finances and 10 trillion won + a in health insurance for five years starting next year in relation to medical reform. The number of people receiving subsidies will be expanded to eight required subjects, and professors and facilities will be expanded in accordance with the increase in medical schools. The training costs of 9,000 specialists (interns, residents) will also be supported for the first time. The facilities and equipment that were insufficient due to the increase in medical schools will also be expanded with approximately 400 billion won.
In addition, up to 2 million won in scholarships will be provided annually to 1.5 million college students, and the income brackets for national scholarship support have been expanded from 8 to 9. A new Youth Housing Dream Loan has been created, which provides loans of up to 80% of the selling price at a low interest rate of 2.2% if you are selected for the youth housing subscription. Public housing will also be supplied to a record-high 252,000 units. 30,000 units will be supplied for the Solid Lease for households with children and no housing.
In addition, the 2025 budget plan includes a measure to improve treatment within the military by increasing the soldier’s salary from the current 1.65 million won to 2.05 million won. The budget plan for research and development (R&D) also includes several measures to foster cutting-edge industries, including providing 4.3 trillion won in low-interest loans for large-scale investment in semiconductors. In terms of agriculture and food, there is a plan to fully introduce income stabilization insurance that guarantees up to 85% of farm household income, and to expand direct payments to farmers and fishermen to 3.4 trillion won, the largest ever.
● Public housing, supply of 252,000 units, the largest ever
The government will supply 252,000 public housing units next year, the largest ever. This is an overwhelmingly larger number than the Moon Jae-in government (155,000 units) and the Lee Myung-bak government (175,000 units), which supplied the most public housing. In particular, the plan is to expand demand by improving the environment to the level of apartments in non-apartments, where there were many housing quality issues. As apartment supply performance is poor due to increased construction costs, the plan is to speed up supply by committing to purchase unsold units worth about 22 trillion won.
The budget to respond to the low birth rate includes work-family balance, care, and housing support measures. Childcare leave benefits will increase from about 2 trillion won this year to 3.4 trillion won next year. Accordingly, the upper limit is expected to expand from 1.5 million won to 2.5 million won. A support fund for coworkers’ work sharing has also been newly established. The amount is 25.2 billion won. In terms of housing, 30,000 housing units will be supplied for families with children and no housing to live in for up to 8 years at 90% of the market price. The amount has been set at 860 billion won. The income requirement for the newborn special loan will also be temporarily relaxed to 250 million won for 3 years.
● First support for training costs for 9,000 residents… Number of people receiving subsidies increased from 220 to 4,600
Regarding medical reform, the plan is to invest 10 trillion won in the finances and 10 trillion won + a in health insurance for 5 years starting next year. In particular, 30 billion won in training expenses will be supported for 900 interns. The number of people receiving monthly allowances of 1 million won will be increased from 220 to 4,600, and the payment will be expanded to all 8 essential subjects including internal medicine, surgery, etc., in addition to pediatrics.
In line with the increase in medical schools, professors and educational facilities will also be expanded. First, 400 billion won will be invested to expand medical school facilities and equipment, and 330 professors at national university medical schools will be increased. The number of ‘Moonlight Children’s Hospitals’ for essential medical care will be doubled. In addition, 300 billion won will be invested to modernize regional responsibility and regional base hospital facilities for the development of regional medical care.
● Up to 2 million won in scholarships per year for 1.5 million college students… Expanding the income bracket of national scholarships
Next year’s budget plan includes increasing scholarships and living expenses for college students and master’s and doctoral researchers, and expanding youth employment, housing, and asset support. First, the income bracket for national scholarship support has been expanded from 8 to 9. This will allow students with a monthly income of 17.19 million won or less in a four-person household to receive scholarships of 1 million to 2 million won.
It was also decided to increase the number of working-study students who provide on- and off-campus jobs by 60,000. It was decided to create a new housing support program of 200,000 won per month for basic livelihood security beneficiaries and near-low-income college students who went to distant universities. It was also decided to provide living expenses of 800,000 won and 1.1 million won per month for master’s and doctoral researchers, respectively, and to create a new scholarship program of 5 million won per year for master’s students in science and engineering.
The budget also includes policies for job seekers. For young people who find jobs in 10 industries, including shipbuilding, basic industries, and lodging services, a “jump incentive” will be paid and technical training will be provided. The number of interns will be expanded to 10,000, and the employment program for young people who have given up on finding jobs will be increased to 12,000. In addition, the Youth Housing Dream Loan, which provides a low interest rate of up to 2.2% for those who are selected for the youth housing subscription, has been newly established.
Lee Ye-ji, Donga.com reporter [email protected]
2024-08-27 04:05:29