The Financial Services Commission and the Korea Inclusive Finance Agency announced that applications for the second round of the Youth Future Savings program will open on October 7. To help young applicants avoid confusion during the process, the two agencies have provided advance guidance on eligibility, the application and screening procedures, and how to switch over from the Youth Leap Account.
 [코리안투데이] 10월 7일부터 2차 가입신청 시작 청년미래적금 가입 전 달라진 절차와 주요일정을 확인하세요 © 장형임 기자 |
The Youth Future Savings is a three-year, flexible-contribution product under which subscribers may freely pay in up to 500,000 won per month. The government matches each monthly contribution with a 6 percent or 12 percent incentive depending on the subscriber’s income and category, and income tax on the interest earned from both contributions and incentives is exempt. The interest rate is fixed for three years at a base of 5 percent, with a preferential rate of up to 2 to 3 percentage points added on top; details can be compared and confirmed on the Korea Federation of Banks consumer portal (portal.kfb.or.kr).
Taking the interest rate, the government incentive and the tax-free interest together, the effective return is similar to subscribing to a simple-interest savings account yielding up to 13.2 to 14.4 percent a year for the standard type and 18.2 to 19.4 percent for the preferential type. For example, assuming a 7 percent rate, a standard-type subscriber would receive 21.1 million won at maturity, combining 18 million won in principal with 1.08 million won in incentives and 2.02 million won in interest, while a preferential-type subscriber would receive 22.27 million won, adding 2.16 million won in incentives and 2.11 million won in interest.
Eligibility is open to young people aged 19 to 34, which for this period covers those born between November 17, 1991, and November 27, 2007. For those who have completed military service, up to six years of service time is excluded from the age calculation. The income requirement is a total salary of 75 million won or less, or a small business owner with annual revenue of 300 million won or less, in either case within 200 percent of the median household income. Screening is based on the most recent income finalized by the National Tax Service for 2025, and employees of small and medium-sized enterprises, newly employed workers and small business owners who meet certain requirements may subscribe under the preferential type.
 [코리안투데이] 10월 7일부터 2차 가입신청 시작 청년미래적금 가입 전 달라진 절차와 주요일정을 확인하세요 © 장형임 기자 |
The second-round period proceeds in the order of application (October 7 to 16), screening (October 19 to November 13), and account opening (November 16 to 27), excluding Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. Applications can be made on a non-face-to-face basis through the mobile apps of participating institutions, including NongHyup, Shinhan, Woori, Hana, IBK, KB, Suhyup, iM, Busan, Gwangju, Jeonbuk, Gyeongnam, KakaoBank and the Korea Post. On October 7 and 8, an odd-even system based on the last digit of the applicant’s birth year will be in effect to ensure smooth processing, while from the 12th to the 16th anyone may apply regardless of birth year. The Youth Future Savings is not a first-come, first-served product, so anyone who applies within the application period will be screened regardless of order.
 [코리안투데이] 10월 7일부터 2차 가입신청 시작 청년미래적금 가입 전 달라진 절차와 주요일정을 확인하세요 © 장형임 기자 |
Starting with this second round, applicants must select their own category themselves at the application stage, choosing among general income earner, SME employee and small business owner. Screening is carried out through data linkage among the relevant agencies without separate document submission, but additional documents such as proof of parental leave benefits or soldiers’ pay, or an SME verification certificate, may be requested if eligibility needs to be confirmed. Ahead of the final screening, preliminary results will be announced from October 30 to November 2, and applicants with objections will be given the chance to appeal from November 2 to 5. Final results will be notified individually on November 12 and 13. However, those seeking to subscribe as small business owners must obtain a small business confirmation certificate in advance from the Small and Medium Enterprise Status Information System (sminfo.mss.go.kr) before applying, and since issuance takes about seven days on average, care is needed.
This round also provides an additional opportunity for existing Youth Leap Account holders to switch over to the Youth Future Savings. Those wishing to switch must first complete the Youth Future Savings application and screening and open an account, and then, within the account-opening period (November 16 to 27), apply for a special early termination of the Youth Leap Account for the purpose of joining the Youth Future Savings. Failure to carry out the special early termination within the deadline will suspend Youth Future Savings contributions, so caution is required. Unlike an ordinary termination, a switch retains the government incentive and the tax-exempt benefit on interest income.
 [코리안투데이] 10월 7일부터 2차 가입신청 시작 청년미래적금 가입 전 달라진 절차와 주요일정을 확인하세요 © 장형임 기자 |
So that young people undergoing military training do not miss the application period, the Financial Services Commission and the Ministry of National Defense will provide support allowing non-face-to-face application and account opening by smartphone inside training camps. Service members who have 2025 taxable income or some non-taxable income such as parental leave benefits or soldiers’ pay and who meet the income requirement may subscribe under the standard type, and concurrent subscription with products such as the Soldier’s Tomorrow Preparation Savings is also possible. However, since the process is non-face-to-face, it is advisable to prepare in advance before enlistment by installing the participating institution’s app and completing membership registration, identity verification and the opening of a deposit and withdrawal account. Meanwhile, KakaoBank will accept applications for up to 100,000 accounts during the second-round period, while other participating institutions will not set a limit on the number of accounts.
For young people, this product is a channel for building seed money by adding government incentives and tax-free benefits during the early years of their careers, when incomes are not high. Once the 2027 budget bill, which includes an expansion of eligibility and a higher payout ratio for the preferential type, is finalized after National Assembly review, a third round will be held, and the raised preferential incentive is also set to be retroactively paid to existing subscribers. Information on subscription can be found on the Youth Future Savings web page (fill4young.kinfa.or.kr), and any questions can be directed to the Korea Inclusive Finance Agency’s youth finance call center (1397, then press 3).
지역 홍보대사 신청 기자양성과정 신청 코리안투데이 지부장 신청 코리안투데이 인천강화코리안브랜드대상 신청 최고경영인대상 신청 소비자만족도대상 신청
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