This year, Korea implemented its first structural pension reform in 18 years. Yet, frustration persists among younger generations, as they are expected to pay more but receive less compared to older generations.

With a clear aim of appealing to these younger voters, presidential candidates are unveiling a range of additional reform proposals.

The most radical proposal comes from the minor conservative Reform Party. Its candidate, Lee Jun-seok — the youngest among the presidential hopefuls — has unveiled a plan to establish a separate pension system for future generations.

Under the scheme, future generations would be enrolled in a newly established pension scheme, where benefits are tied to individual contributions and investment returns. The current pension system’s unfunded liabilities would be covered through government funding.

In contrast, the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) candidate Lee Jae-myung and the ruling People Power Party (PPP) candidate Kim Moon-soo have opted for adding some changes within the current pension framework.

DPK’s Lee focuses on closing coverage gaps in the wake of the latest reform. His plan includes measures such as state subsidies for young people making their first pension contributions and counting the 18-month mandatory military service period toward pension contribution records.

Meanwhile, Kim is calling for another round of pension reform, emphasizing the need for long-term financial stability.

He pledges to introduce an “automatic adjustment mechanism,” which would allow pension benefits or contribution rates to be modified in response to demographic changes. This is seen as an effort to ensure the sustainability of the pension system without the political burden of repeated legislative intervention. Kim has also pledged to include young people in every stage of the next round of pension reform.

While all three candidates have proposed solutions aimed at improving the pension system, critics argue that their plans lack feasibility and specificity.

Reform Party Lee’s proposal to separate pension systems mirrors a plan suggested by the state-run think tank Korea Development Institute last year. While widely seen as the most proactive approach, its plan was effectively shelved due to its enormous funding cost — reportedly rivaling the scale of the national annual budget.

As for DPK’s Lee, critics argue that his focus on expanding benefits fails to address the worsening fiscal condition of the pension system.

Kim’s proposal also faces scrutiny for lacking concrete implementation strategies beyond the automatic adjustment mechanism.

The pension reform plan that passed the National Assembly in March raised the contribution rate from 9 percent to 13 percent and increased the income replacement rate from 40 percent to 43 percent.

Although the changes are expected to delay the depletion of the pension fund by eight years, experts argue that the amendment still falls short of addressing the system’s structural flaws in the face of an aging society.

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