Starting in August, the minimum period for parental leave will be shortened from 30 days to one week.
The amount of unpaid wages protected in the event of a company's bankruptcy will be increased from three months' worth to six months' worth, and statutory penalties for wage arrears will be raised.
Train tickets will be available for booking up to two months in advance, and the disaster text message service will be improved.
An AI-powered Government 24 service, which upgrades administrative services using artificial intelligence (AI) technology, will also be launched.
The government announced today (June 30) that it has published a booklet titled "Changes in the Second Half of 2026," which summarizes 245 policy and system changes that will affect the lives of citizens.
In the fields of health, welfare, and employment, the reform of the parental leave system stands out.
A short-term parental leave system will be implemented starting August 20, allowing parents to take leave for short-term care needs, such as when a child aged 8 or younger (up to the second grade of elementary school) is hospitalized due to illness or accident, or when daycare centers or schools are closed.
Currently, parental leave benefits are provided only when taking at least 30 days of leave. However, the system is being reformed to allow payments in one- or two-week increments, enabling working parents to respond more flexibly.
The scope of protection for unpaid wages in the event of business bankruptcy will also be expanded.
Currently, employees can only receive up to three months of unpaid wages, but the system will be reformed starting August 20 to allow for up to six months of coverage.
Statutory penalties for wage arrears will be strengthened starting October 8, increasing from a maximum of three years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million won to a maximum of five years in prison or a fine of up to 50 million won.
Anyone who reports violations of industrial safety and health regulations, the concealment of industrial accidents, or violations of work suspension orders will be eligible for a reward.
Detailed information will be provided later through the Ministry of Employment and Labor's Labor Portal (labor.moel.go.kr).
In the field of land and transport, railway-related services will be improved.
A high-speed rail integrated app, which allows users to book all train tickets including KTX and SRT, will be launched in August.
Currently, services are split between the Korail Talk and SRT apps, but users will be able to search, book, and purchase tickets through a single app.
The booking window for train tickets will be expanded from one month to two months in advance to enhance user convenience.
Administrative services closely related to daily life will also be improved.
The disaster text message service will be upgraded to reduce fatigue caused by duplicate or excessive messaging and to provide more detailed information.
The character limit, currently at 90 characters, will be increased to 157, and a duplicate check function will be introduced to prevent the repeated sending of similar disaster messages.
"AI Government 24," which incorporates AI into the existing "Government 24" service that allows for the rapid processing of various administrative civil petitions online, will be officially launched at the end of the year.
Even if a user does not know the exact administrative terminology, the AI will understand the intent of the question and provide customized information by searching through over 20,000 types of civil and benefit services provided by Government 24.
An AI-based voice conversation service will also be piloted for the digitally vulnerable.
Weather forecasts will be provided in much greater detail starting November 12.
Medium-term weather forecasts, which provide information for 6 to 11 days ahead, will be provided at 3 to 6-hour intervals.
The spatial scope of weather forecasts, currently provided at the provincial level, will be subdivided into 5km by 5km grids to improve accuracy.
Starting in August, farmers or agricultural corporations will be allowed to install restrooms or parking spaces on farmland without obtaining a permit for farmland conversion.
This is expected to help alleviate inconveniences for farmers during work and secure parking spaces for tractors and other agricultural machinery.
Support for vulnerable groups will be expanded.
The "Just Dream" centers, which provide food and daily necessities to those in need, will be expanded to 300 locations across 229 cities, counties, and districts nationwide starting in September.
Users will also be able to receive professional welfare counseling and assistance linked to welfare services.
Sanitary pads will be provided for free in public facilities such as community centers, libraries, cultural centers, welfare centers, public health centers, family centers, and youth centers.
Previously, sanitary pads were provided to vulnerable youth aged 9 to 24 through a voucher system, but in the second half of the year, all women in need will be able to receive them through public facilities. Voucher support will also continue in parallel.
Online shopping mall operators and other mail-order intermediaries must notify sellers of agricultural and fishery products about the country-of-origin labeling system.
This measure is intended to prevent sellers from receiving fines or criminal punishment due to a lack of awareness regarding labeling obligations and to guarantee the consumer's right to verify country-of-origin information.
Illegal activities related to culture will be strictly punished, and opportunities for cultural enjoyment will be expanded.
A reporting reward system will be introduced to eradicate scalping for performances or sports events, and fines of up to 50 times the profit gained from illegal sales will be imposed.
Violators may also face up to one year in prison or a fine of up to 10 million won.
The response speed for blocking illegal webtoon and video sites will be increased to within 1 to 6 days of discovery.
Previously, this process took two to three weeks, but faster action will help reduce copyright damage.
A total of 4.5 million movie discount coupons (6,000 won each, two per person) will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis to anyone who wishes to watch a movie.
Policies to promote balanced regional development and encourage investment in areas with declining populations will also be implemented.
Growth engine industries will be selected for each of the five mega-regions and three special zones, and pan-governmental policies will provide exceptional support in seven key areas to boost local investment.
For areas with declining populations, a higher weight for balanced regional development will be applied in the comprehensive evaluation of the feasibility of private investment projects, and local small and medium-sized enterprises will be given preferential treatment through systems such as locally restricted competitive bidding.
In addition, the interbank foreign exchange market will be open 24 hours a day to increase accessibility for foreign investors and meet the real-time currency exchange needs of import and export companies.
Accordingly, the foreign exchange market is expected to operate 24 hours a day without interruption, excluding January 1 and weekends.
The "Changes in the Second Half of 2026" booklet will be distributed and made available at local governments, public libraries, braille libraries, and correctional institutions nationwide during July.
It will also be available on the Ministry of Finance and Economy website, online bookstores (YES24, Kyobo, Aladin), and the dedicated "Changes" webpage (https://whatsnew.mofe.go.kr).
The content has been organized in a natural language Q&A format with added classification data such as "#Youth" and "#Housing," allowing users to easily search for or check information using AI.
To make it easier to check the changes via AI, the content of the booklet is also provided in a markdown format optimized for AI reading.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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