Korea’s National Pension adds months to your membership record when you have or adopt a child. People call it the childbirth credit; the basis is Article 19 of the National Pension Act. The article was amended in 2025 (in force 1 January 2026) and amended again on 20 October 2026. The second change takes effect on 1 January 2027: two children earn 27 months instead of 24. But someone whose first child came in 2025 or earlier and whose second comes from 2027 gets 15 months under the addenda. Enter the number of children and the years to see how many months are added.
1. One child: 12 months — since 2026 the first child counts too (Art. 19(1)).
2. A second child from 1 January 2027: 27 months for two, plus 18 months for each child after that.
3. First child by 2025, second from 2027: 15 months for two — Addendum Art. 3 proviso, Act No. 22096.
Calculator
Updates as you type. “Arrived” means birth or adoption. For a first child in 2025 or earlier with no second child from 2027, the earlier rules apply and we don’t work them out here.
The article — now and from 2027
| Type | What the source says | Worth noting (ours) |
|---|---|---|
| Art. 19(1), in force 1 Jan 2026 | Two or fewer children: 12 months for each child. Three or more: the 24 months for the first two plus 18 months for each child beyond two | Added when the old-age pension right is acquired. Addendum Art. 3(1), Act No. 20903: applies from people whose first child comes after 1 Jan 2026 |
| Art. 19(1), amended 20 Oct 2026, in force 1 Jan 2027 | One child: 12 months. Two: 12 months for the first plus 15 months. Three or more: the 27 months for the first two plus 18 months for each beyond two | Addendum Art. 3, Act No. 22096: applies from people whose second child comes on or after 1 Jan 2027 |
| Addendum Art. 3 proviso, Act No. 22096 | First child by 31 Dec 2025 and second child on or after 1 Jan 2027: two children 15 months; three or more, 15 months plus 18 for each beyond two | We read it as the amended figure without the first child’s 12 months (our reading) |
| Addendum Art. 3(2), Act No. 20903 | Someone whose first child came between 1 Jan 2008 and the 2026 start, and who has another child after it: the proviso of the old Art. 19(1) does not apply to that child, unless the old-age pension right was acquired before 2026 | We didn’t read the old proviso |
The two versions differ only in the second child’s share. The 2026 version gives 24 months for two (12 × 2); the 2027 version gives 12 plus 15, 27 months. Both add 18 months for each further child, so the gap is 3 months whatever the number of children (our sum).
Months by number of children — our summary
| Children (our summary) | First 2026 or later, second 2027 or later | First 2025 or earlier, second 2027 or later |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 months | Earlier rules (not worked out) |
| 2 | 27 months (24 if the second came in 2026) | 15 months |
| 3 | 45 months (42 if the second came in 2026) | 33 months |
| 4 | 63 months (60 if the second came in 2026) | 51 months |
Two children can earn 27 or 15 months depending on when the first arrived — a 12-month gap (our sum). The proviso just lists the periods; it doesn’t give a reason.
Which children count — Enforcement Decree Art. 25
| Type | What the source says | Worth noting (ours) |
|---|---|---|
| Counted | Children by birth, acknowledged children, adopted and fully adopted children under the Civil Act, and children adopted under the domestic and intercountry adoption laws — including a child who has already died at the time of the credit | Adoption counts as “having” a child |
| Not counted | If, when the parent acquires the old-age pension right, the child has been adopted by someone else or the adoption was dissolved, that parent can’t add the months | Art. 25(2) |
| No double use | Once one member has added a child, no one else can add the same child | Art. 25(3) |
If both parents are members
Article 19(2) says that where both parents are or were members, the months go to one of them by agreement; without agreement they are split equally. The agreement procedure is left to a Ministry ordinance. Splitting 27 months gives 13.5 each; the articles we read don’t say how half a month is handled.
Under Article 19(3) the cost is borne by the state in whole or in part — unlike the military service credit, where Article 18(3) says “in whole”.
An overall pension estimate is in National Pension calculator; the income credited during credit periods (NPS guidance) is in ways to increase your National Pension.
Checklist
- ☐ Was the first child in 2025 or earlier, or 2026 or later?
- ☐ Was the second child in 2026, or 2027 or later?
- ☐ Adopted and deceased children count (Decree Art. 25)
- ☐ If both parents are members, agree who takes the months
- ☐ The months are added when the old-age pension right is acquired
Questions that remain
My first child was born in 2025 and the second comes in 2027. Isn’t that 27 months?
No — under the Addendum Art. 3 proviso (Act No. 22096) two children earn 15 months notwithstanding the amendment. The 27 months are for people whose first child came in 2026 or later.
Twins in 2026 and a third child in 2027?
The 2027 version applies from people whose second child comes on or after 1 January 2027. With the second child in 2026 we read the 2026 version as applying (24 months plus 18 each) — our reading, and the calculator follows it.
Does it reach an old-age pension already being paid?
The article adds the months “when the old-age pension right is acquired”. Addendum Art. 3(2) of Act No. 20903 also excepts people who acquired the right before 2026.
Sources
- Korean law database (law.go.kr) — National Pension Act Art. 19 and addenda — source (current text, effective 20 October 2026, Act No. 22096; checked 22 October 2026). Art. 19(1) in the 2026 wording and the amended wording in force 1 Jan 2027, (2) agreement and equal split, (3) funding, (4) delegation on counting children; Addenda of Act No. 20903 Arts. 1, 3 and of Act No. 22096 Arts. 1, 3.
- Korean law database — National Pension Act Enforcement Decree Art. 25 — source (current text, effective 1 January 2026, Presidential Decree No. 35602; checked 22 October 2026). Which children count (birth, adoption, deceased), adoption by others and dissolution, no double use.
- Not read. The pre-2026 Art. 19(1) and its proviso; the Ministry ordinance on the agreement procedure; the income credited for these months.
- What we added. The “worth noting” column and the Korean everyday gloss.
Where to check further
- National Pension Service — months under the earlier rules (first child by 2025), and the parents’ agreement form.
Written on 22 October 2026. The content is from the source; the glosses are ours.
