Whether you can join Korea’s home pension (a reverse mortgage guaranteed by the Korea Housing Finance Corporation, KHFC) comes down to three things in the law: age, the type of home, and its price. Article 2(8-2) of the KHFC Act says the homeowner or the homeowner’s spouse must be at least the age set by Decree, and Decree Article 3-2(2) sets that age at 55. Age is taken at the time the mortgage or trust is first registered. On price, Act Article 43-11 and Decree Article 28-9 draw the line at a published price of 1.2 billion won. Residential officetels and sold senior welfare homes are covered within that line. We built a checker from these articles.
1. Age: the owner or the spouse is 55 or over — at first registration.
2. Price: published price of 1.2 billion won or less. A home worth more than 1.2 billion won is treated as 1.2 billion won when payments are set.
3. Residential officetels and sold senior welfare homes are included — the number of homes owned is set by KHFC’s guarantee standards, not the Act.
Checker
Updates as you type. Enter prices in units of 10,000 won (90,000 = 900 million won). It checks only what the Act and Decree say: age, type of home and the 1.2 billion won published-price cap. The number of homes and nationality are set by KHFC, not by the Act, so the checker does not judge them.
The provisions
| Type | What the source says | Worth noting (ours) |
|---|---|---|
| Act Art. 2(8-2) | KHFC guarantees the debt a homeowner takes on by registering a mortgage or trust over the home and drawing living funds from a lender as a pension. The homeowner or the homeowner’s spouse must be at least the age set by Decree, taken when the mortgage or trust is first registered. | “Or” means one of the two is enough |
| Decree Art. 3-2(2) | The age is 55. (The 50 exception applied only to sign-ups from 1 June 2013 to 31 May 2014.) | The exception is no longer used |
| Act Art. 43-11(1) | Homes include (1) sold senior welfare homes, (2) homes meeting the Income Tax Act’s high-value home test, and (3) officetels used as homes, where the published price (or the committee’s standard price if none) does not exceed the Decree amount. | Revised 8 Dec 2020 and 11 Jul 2023 |
| Decree Art. 28-9 | The Decree amount is 1.2 billion won. | Added 4 Oct 2023 |
| Act Art. 43-11(2) | For a high-value home, the high-value threshold is taken as the home’s price when the pension amount is set. | The Income Tax Act threshold is a transaction value of 1.2 billion won |
Income Tax Act Article 89(1)3 treats a home as high-value when its transaction value exceeds 1.2 billion won. So a home whose market value is above 1.2 billion won can still qualify if its published price is 1.2 billion won or less, and its payments are then set as if it were worth 1.2 billion won (our reading). An ordinary home worth 1.2 billion won or less normally has a lower published price too, so the checker uses the 1.2 billion won published-price line for every type.
“One of you is 55” is not the same as “the younger one”
For joining, the words “the homeowner or the spouse” mean either one being 55 is enough. An owner aged 54 with a spouse of 57 can join. KHFC’s explainer, though, sets the monthly payment by the younger spouse’s age. That is set out with the source in our home pension guide. Joining and the amount you get look at different ages; that is the main point of this piece (our summary).
Six cases — our examples
| Case (our example) | Result | Worth noting (ours) |
|---|---|---|
| Owner 54, spouse 57, house published at 800 million won | Yes | The spouse is 55 or over |
| Owner 54, spouse 53, published at 600 million won | No | Both under 55 — wait for the age |
| Owner 60, house published at 1.3 billion won | No | Published price over 1.2 billion won |
| Owner 56, residential officetel published at 500 million won | Yes | Act Art. 43-11(1)3 |
| Owner 62, spouse 60, market value 1.5 billion, published 1 billion won | Yes | Payments set as if worth 1.2 billion won |
| Owner 70, non-residential officetel published at 300 million won | No | The Act lists only officetels used as homes |
The checker looks only at the Act and Decree. The number of homes owned (KHFC’s explainer says one home in principle, more allowed if the combined published price is 1.2 billion won or less) and nationality are left to KHFC’s guarantee standards under Act Article 9(4)1, so we left them out. Confirm with KHFC before applying.
Seven ways payments end — Decree Art. 28-2(2)
Even after joining, the lender can call on KHFC’s guarantee if one of these happens. Put simply, payments stop and the loan moves to settlement (our gloss).
| Type | What the source says | Worth noting (ours) |
|---|---|---|
| Item 1 | The person guaranteed and the spouse have both died | — |
| Item 2 | After the person dies, the spouse does not complete transfer of ownership and take over the debt within 6 months (the ownership part does not apply to the trust method) | A longer period set by KHFC for redevelopment cases |
| Item 3 | The person and spouse move their resident registration away from the home | Except a change of home, or hospital stays and other notified reasons |
| Item 4 | The person and spouse do not live in the home for 1 year or more in a row | Except hospital stays and other notified reasons |
| Item 5 | The person loses ownership of the home (not the trust method) | Except loss through joining a redevelopment association |
| Item 6 | The balance is expected to exceed the maximum secured amount and the person refuses a request to raise it | — |
| Item 7 | Other reasons set by the committee | We did not read the committee’s rules |
The two most likely to catch people out are leaving the home empty for 1 year or more (item 4) and moving your resident registration (item 3). Both exclude hospital stays and other unavoidable reasons KHFC posts on its website. The 6-month window for a spouse (item 2) is a mortgage-method rule; the Decree notes that the trust method needs no transfer of ownership.
How much you can take out as a lump sum (70%, 50% or 90% of the loan limit) is in home pension lump-sum withdrawal limit calculator.
Checklist
- ☐ One of you is 55 or over at first registration
- ☐ The published price is 1.2 billion won or less (not the market value)
- ☐ An officetel is used as a home
- ☐ Check number of homes and nationality with KHFC
- ☐ After joining, do not leave the home for 1 year or move your registration
Questions that remain
Can I apply before turning 55?
The Act takes age at first registration. On our reading you need to be 55 on the registration date, not the application date. Ask KHFC about the order of steps.
Which published price counts?
The price published under the Act on Public Announcement of Real Estate Values, or the committee’s standard price if there is none. How the home is valued for payments is in our home pension guide.
What if we own two homes?
Act Article 9(4)1 leaves the number of homes to the committee’s guarantee standards. The Act alone cannot answer it, so the checker does not try.
Sources
- Korean law database (law.go.kr) — Korea Housing Finance Corporation Act Arts. 2(8-2), 9(4), 43-11 — source (current text, effective 2 January 2026, Act No. 21065; checked 29 October 2026). Definition of the home pension guarantee and when age is taken; what the guarantee standards must cover (including number of homes); covered homes (senior welfare homes, high-value homes, residential officetels) and the 1.2 billion won deeming rule.
- Korean law database — KHFC Act Enforcement Decree Arts. 3-2, 28-2, 28-9 — source (effective 1 October 2026, Decree No. 36729; checked 29 October 2026). Age 55 (and how long the 50 exception lasted), the seven reasons for calling the guarantee, the 1.2 billion won price.
- Korean law database — Income Tax Act Art. 89(1)3 — source (current text, effective 1 July 2026, Act No. 21221; checked 29 October 2026). High-value home = transaction value over 1.2 billion won.
- Not read. KHFC’s guarantee standards and procedures, nationality rules, the committee’s item-7 reasons, case law.
- What we added. The “worth noting” column and the Korean everyday gloss.
Where to check further
- Korea Housing Finance Corporation — number of homes, nationality, payment estimates.
- Home pension guide — mortgage vs trust method, costs, payment options.
Written on 29 October 2026. The content is from the source; the glosses are ours.
