Korea net pay calculator

What gets deducted from your Korean salary

Korean employees pay four mandatory deductions each month. Your employer withholds these and pays them on your behalf, so your bank deposit is already the net amount.

Income tax (소득세) and local tax (지방소득세)

Korea uses a progressive income tax system. The rate you pay on each additional won increases as your income rises. Current brackets range from 6% on the lowest income to 45% on income above ₩1 billion. A local income tax of 10% of your income tax is added on top.

The tax is not applied to your gross salary directly. First, a substantial employment income deduction (근로소득공제) is subtracted. This deduction ranges from 70% for low earners down to 2% for high earners, capped at ₩20,000,000. A basic personal exemption of ₩1,500,000 is also subtracted. The result is your taxable income.

National Pension (NPS, 국민연금)

From 2026, you and your employer each pay 4.75% of your standard monthly income, for a combined 9.5% (increased from 9% as part of a pension reform). Your contribution is capped: the maximum standard monthly income used for pension calculation is ₩6,370,000 (July 2025 to June 2026), so the most you pay is ₩302,575 per month regardless of how high your salary goes.

Pension contributions are fully refundable when you leave Korea if your home country has no pension treaty with Korea, or if you are from a treaty country that permits a lump-sum refund. Check the NPS website for your country's treaty status.

National Health Insurance (NHI, 건강보험)

From 2026, the combined NHI rate is 7.19% of your standard monthly income. You and your employer split this equally, so you pay 3.595%. An additional long-term care insurance premium (장기요양보험) is charged at 13.14% of your health insurance premium, bringing your effective share to roughly 4.07%.

Employment insurance (고용보험)

Employees pay 0.9% of gross salary. This covers unemployment benefits and job training programs.

Foreign worker flat rate (외국인 단일세율)

Foreign workers in Korea can elect a flat income tax rate of 19% on their gross salary instead of the standard progressive system. Under the flat rate, no employment income deduction applies. The 19% is charged directly on gross income, but this is often still advantageous for higher earners where the progressive rate would exceed 19%.

The local income tax (10% of income tax) still applies, making the combined effective income tax rate 20.9% on gross. Social insurance contributions (NPS, NHI, employment insurance) are the same under both methods.

The flat rate option is available for a fixed period from your first year of employment in Korea. The eligibility period and conditions have changed over time, so confirm the current rules with a Korean tax accountant or the National Tax Service (NTS) before electing this option.