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When to claim Korea's National Pension

Compares claiming early against deferring, and works out the age at which the cumulative totals cross over.

Korea's National Pension can be claimed up to five years early or deferred up to five years. Claiming early cuts the monthly amount and deferring raises it, so the longer you live the better deferring looks. Enter the monthly projection from the National Pension Service and this works out the age at which the cumulative totals cross. For a couple it compares the two choices together, as one household.

Your numbers

What you enter is saved in this browser, so it is still here next time

Household

One person spending, one pension

KRW

Use the estimate from Korea's National Pension Service (its “check my pension” service) exactly as it gives it

yrs old

It depends on your birth year — 65 for anyone born in 1969 or later

months

A negative number starts it early, a positive one defers it. Up to five years (60 months) either way.

yrs old

Totals are compared on the assumption you receive it until this age

When is it better to start?

Try shifting the start

Starting as normal

Monthly, compared

As normal (from age 65.0 of yours)
₩1,000,000
Shifted (from age 65.0 of yours, 0%)
₩1,000,000
Difference per month
₩0

If you receive it to that age

Total, starting as normal
₩264M
Total, shifted
₩264M
Difference
₩0

Inflation adjustments raise both the normal and the shifted pension by the same proportion each year, so the break-even age does not move. The totals in the table are before inflation, though, and so come out lower than what is actually received. Earning while drawing the pension can reduce it, and effects such as survivor benefits and health insurance premiums are not included here.

Year by year

Each row is the year running from that birthday; cumulative figures are as at the end of that year.

AgeNormal, that yearNormal, cumulativeShifted, that yearShifted, cumulativeDifference
65₩12M₩12M₩12M₩12M₩0
66₩12M₩24M₩12M₩24M₩0
67₩12M₩36M₩12M₩36M₩0
68₩12M₩48M₩12M₩48M₩0
69₩12M₩60M₩12M₩60M₩0
70₩12M₩72M₩12M₩72M₩0
71₩12M₩84M₩12M₩84M₩0
72₩12M₩96M₩12M₩96M₩0
73₩12M₩108M₩12M₩108M₩0
74₩12M₩120M₩12M₩120M₩0
75₩12M₩132M₩12M₩132M₩0
76₩12M₩144M₩12M₩144M₩0
77₩12M₩156M₩12M₩156M₩0
78₩12M₩168M₩12M₩168M₩0
79₩12M₩180M₩12M₩180M₩0
80₩12M₩192M₩12M₩192M₩0
81₩12M₩204M₩12M₩204M₩0
82₩12M₩216M₩12M₩216M₩0
83₩12M₩228M₩12M₩228M₩0
84₩12M₩240M₩12M₩240M₩0
85₩12M₩252M₩12M₩252M₩0
86₩12M₩264M₩12M₩264M₩0
Set a retirement target with this pensionCarries the shifted figure of ₩1M a month into the retirement target calculator

Make a link with these numbers

Opening the link fills this screen with the same values. Useful for going through it with a partner, or for comparing two sets of conditions.

Common questions

QHow much is deducted for claiming early?

0.5% for each month brought forward — 6% a year — up to five years, so up to 30% less. The reduction is permanent. Claiming early also requires income to stay under a threshold.

QHow much is added for deferring?

0.6% for each month deferred — 7.2% a year — up to five years, so up to 36% more. You can start at any point within those five years, and you receive nothing for the period you defer.

QHow is the crossover age worked out?

Claiming early means receiving sooner but less each month; deferring is the reverse. The crossover is the age at which the totals received so far are equal. Live beyond it and deferring is ahead in total; die before it and claiming early is. Deferral typically crosses over in the mid-80s, early claiming in the mid-to-late 70s.

QWhy is inflation not applied?

The pension rises with inflation each year, and that rise applies at the same rate whether you claimed early, on time or late. So the crossover age — which is what decides the better choice — is the same regardless of inflation. The totals shown are before inflation and therefore lower than what you would actually receive.

QWhere do I find my projected monthly amount?

Under "my pension" on the National Pension Service website or app. This calculator does not compute the base pension itself: the proportional constants and revaluation rates vary by when you joined, making it hard to reproduce exactly, and deciding on a wrong figure would do more harm than good.

QHow does a couple compare?

Set each person's choice separately and the crossover is worked out on the household total. Combinations such as one deferring while the other claims on time compare directly. Different ages and life expectancies mean different receiving periods, so each is entered separately and every point in time is converted to your age for a single table.

QIs it ever better for only one of a couple to defer?

It can be. Deferring pays off the longer you live, so a common arrangement is for whoever is likely to live longer to defer while the other claims on time. During the deferral that person receives nothing, so the household has to cover those years from elsewhere — check in the drawdown simulator that it holds.