The Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced that the National Assembly approved the first supplementary budget for 2026 at KRW 9.488 trillion (≈ $7.12 billion) during the plenary session on April 10.
The package allocates KRW 4.793 trillion (≈ $3.59 billion) for relief payments to ease the burden of high fuel prices.
Under the plan, up to KRW 600,000 per person (≈ $450) will be paid to the bottom 70% of households by income, with payments distributed in two phases according to income and regional priority rules.
The budget also earmarks KRW 15.6 billion (≈ $11.7 million) for programs to give young people work experience in local social-solidarity and community-economy sectors.
Officials will begin project briefings and conduct demand surveys this month, with the programs scheduled to launch in June.
The supplementary budget includes KRW 200 million (≈ $150,000) to fund evaluations for selecting Sunshine Income villages. The government aims to select more than 700 villages this year and expand the program nationwide.
Increases in the local allocation tax tied to higher domestic tax revenues were set at KRW 4.6793 trillion (≈ $3.51 billion). The government said this will help support local governments’ efforts to manage the crisis.
Minister Yoon Ho-joong said, \"We will execute the high-fuel-price relief payments and the local allocation tax quickly and without delay to ensure the supplementary budget achieves its goals of easing fuel costs and stabilizing livelihoods.\"
He added, \"By expanding Sunshine Income villages nationwide, we aim to respond to the Middle East war crisis and create a new local development model that can also address regional depopulation.\"
