Starting this year, companies can receive tax breaks of up to 15-and-a-half million won per year for three years every time they hire a North Korean defector. 

That’s about ten-thousand-600 U.S. dollars per year.

The unification ministry said the changes took effect Friday with the promulgation of a newly revised enforcement decree for the Act on Restriction on Special Cases Concerning Taxation. 

Under the revised rules, a company that hires a North Korean defector this year and receives tax deductions of 15-and-a-half million won could enjoy the same benefits in 2026 and 2027 if it retains that North Korean employee through 2027. 

The ministry plans to provide companies and North Korean defectors with guidelines on the new tax benefits via the 25 centers across the nation that support defectors in adjusting to South Korean society.