Summary of nationalities/visas eligible for South Korea pension contributions

Foreigners eligible to join the South Korean National Pension

• Foreigners residing in South Korea must join the National Pension Plan on the same basis as South Koreans.
• Foreigners between the ages of 18 and 60 are must be enrolled in the National Pension Plan, and when working at a workplace, they become Workplace-based subscribers, and other foreigners become Individually  subscribers.
• Citizens of countries that have not compulsorily enrolled South Korean nationals in a foreign country are excluded from the coverage of the South Korean National Pension Plan.

---

Eligibility for National Pension Enrollment by Nationality

Division	Country
Countries eligible for Workplace-based Insured subscription Countries eligible for Individually Insured subscription	Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Cape Verde, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Federation, Egypt, Estonia, Finland , France, Germany, Greece, Guyana, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Latvia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mauritius, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Palau, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Sudan, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay United States, Uzbekistan
Countries eligible for Workplace-based Insured subscription Countries not eligible for Individually Insured subscription	Algeria, Belize, Bhutan, Bolivia, Burundi, Cameroon, Congo, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Gabon, Ghana, Grenada, Haiti, India, Indonesia , Ivory Coast, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Mexico, Mongolia, Paraguay, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Uganda, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Yemen, Zimbabwe
Countries not eligible for Workplace-based Insured subscription Countries not eligible for Individually Insured subscription	Armenia, Bangladesh, Belarus, Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Ethiopia, Fiji, Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Swaziland, Tonga, Vietnam

• Among countries not listed above, foreigners from countries where a pension system has not been confirmed are eligible to join the National Pension Service.

---

Whether it is possible to join the National Pension by my visa?

Visa Category	Name	National Pension join availability
D-5, D-7, D-8, D-9, D-10 E-1, E-2, E-3, E-4, E-5, E-6, E-7, E-8, E-9, E-10 F-2, F-4, F-5, F-6, H-1, H-2	Journalism, Intra-Company Transfer, Corporate investor International trade, Job Seeking, Professor, Foreign language instructor, Research, Technology transfer, Professional employment, Artistic performer, Designated activities, Training employment, Non-professional employment, Crew employee, Resident, Overseas Korean, Permanent resident, Marriage to Korean Citizen, Working holiday, Working visit	You can join the National Pension Service.
A-1, A-2, A-3 B-1, B-2 C-1 C-3, C-4 D-1, D-2, D-3, D-4, D-6 F-1, F-3 G-1	Diplomat, Government official, Agreement,  Visa exemption, Tourist/transit Temporary news coverage, Short-term visit, Short-term employee, Artist, Students,  Industrial trainee, General trainee, Religion Visiting or joining family, Accompanying spouse/child Miscellaneous	You cannot join the national pension.

---

Can foreigners claim national pension?

• Foreigners can receive all pension benefits under the National Pension Act if they meet the same requirements as South Koreans to receive old-age pension, survivors' pension, and disability pension.
• Foreigners can claim a lump-sum refund for reasons of returning to their home country. However, it is limited to foreigners enrolled in the National Pension Service with a status of residence that falls under E-8 (training employment), E-9 (non-professional employment), and H-2 (working visit).

---

If you would like to know more about the South Korean National Pension System, please visit the website below.

https://www.nps.or.kr/jsppage/english/main.jsp

National Pension Service