Sean Daily

This is an English version of our Korean article, based on public information as of October 4, 2026. Please check the official sources below for the latest details.

Read the original Korean article

When the weather turns chilly, heating bills are the first worry. The Energy Voucher is a program that supports the cooling and heating costs of energy-vulnerable households, and it can be used for electricity, city gas, district heating, kerosene, LPG and briquette costs. From October, winter-season use begins in earnest.

In this article, we checked who can receive it, how much you get, and how to use it and apply, using materials from Bokjiro, the Korea Energy Agency and Policy Briefing. Some criteria can change every year, so we look at it based on the 2026 guide. Eligibility for many Korean programs depends on residency or registration status in Korea, so please confirm on the official site.

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Application Period and Usage Period

Applications for the 2026 Energy Voucher run from June 15 to December 31. The Briquette Conversion Energy Voucher, for households that replaced a briquette boiler with another type of boiler, can be applied for from August 7 to December 31.

The usage period is divided into summer and winter. The summer season ran from July 1 to September 30, 2026, and could be used only for electricity bills. The winter season runs from October 1, 2026 to May 31, 2027. According to an article by the Policy Reporters, this year the voucher was announced as being usable freely within the total amount during the usage period, without a summer/winter distinction.

One thing to note is that you can use the voucher only after you apply and are selected. If you apply right before the December 31 deadline, the period in which you can use it may be shortened accordingly, so if you are eligible, it is better to apply early.

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Who Is Eligible: Income Criteria and Household Member Characteristics

You must meet both of two conditions for the Energy Voucher. The first is the income criterion: you must be a recipient of one or more of the livelihood, medical, housing or education benefits under the National Basic Living Security Act. The second is the household member characteristic criterion: you or a household member must fall under one of the following.

Household member characteristic	Detailed criteria
Senior	Born on or before December 31, 1961, per resident registration
Infant or young child	Preschool-age child born on or after January 1, 2019, per resident registration
Person with a disability	A person with a disability registered under the Welfare of Disabled Persons Act
Pregnant woman	A woman who is pregnant or less than 6 months after giving birth
People with serious, rare or severe intractable diseases	People with a condition that meets the copayment special calculation criteria in the Enforcement Decree of the National Health Insurance Act
Single-parent family	A person eligible for support under the Support for Single-Parent Families Act
Boy- and girl-headed household	Eligible for boy- and girl-headed household support (including children in foster care)
Household with many children	A household whose members include a father or mother and 2 or more children under 19

Meeting the income criterion alone is not enough, and it is said that quite a few households are rejected because they do not have a qualifying household member characteristic. First check whether your household has a characteristic that applies.

There are also cases that are excluded from support. Households whose members are all recipients living in benefit-covered institutions (보장시설) are excluded. In addition, households that received the winter fuel cost under the Emergency Welfare Support Act (October 2026 to March 2027), the 2026 briquette coupon from the Korea Mine Rehabilitation and Mineral Resources Corporation, or the 2026 Briquette Conversion Energy Voucher cannot receive support that overlaps with the winter voucher.

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Support Amount by Household

The support amount varies with the number of household members. This amount is not money paid every month, but the total you can use over the entire usage period.

Household size	Support amount (total for the usage period)
One-person household	KRW 295,200
Two-person household	KRW 407,500
Three-person household	KRW 532,700
Household of four or more	KRW 701,300

The guide says that if you have received or will receive other energy welfare benefits, your support amount may be reduced or you may be dropped from eligibility. If this might apply to you, ask the help center before applying.

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Where and How to Use It

The Energy Voucher is used through either the bill-deduction method or the National Happiness Card method. With bill deduction, the voucher amount is automatically subtracted from your electricity, city gas or district heating bill, and with the National Happiness Card, you pay for fuels such as kerosene, LPG and briquettes by card.

Type	Usable energy	Usage period	Notes
Summer bill deduction	Electricity	July 1 to September 30, 2026	Virtual card (bill deduction) method
Winter bill deduction	One of electricity, city gas or district heating	October 1, 2026 to May 31, 2027	Deducted only from bills issued within the usage period
Winter National Happiness Card	Electricity, city gas, kerosene, LPG, briquettes	October 3, 2026 to May 31, 2027	Card payment must be completed within the usage period

With the bill-deduction method, you choose at the time of application which bill (one of electricity, city gas or district heating) will be deducted. If you live in an apartment, it is often deducted automatically from the maintenance fee, so there is nothing separate to pay. With the National Happiness Card, by contrast, you must complete the payment yourself within the usage period.

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How to Apply and Documents to Prepare

You can apply by visiting the community service center (eup/myeon/dong) at your residence listed on your resident registration abstract, or online on the Bokjiro website. If getting around is difficult, an application on your behalf or an ex officio application by the responsible official is also possible. However, applications on someone else’s behalf can be made only in person, not online.

The required documents are described as follows. You only need to prepare the items that apply to you.

• Energy voucher issuance application form (required)
• If household member characteristics need to be confirmed: for 7-year-old (born 2019) young children, a school exemption or deferral certificate bearing the elementary school principal’s seal; for pregnant women and people with diseases, a medical certificate or confirmation from a medical institution; for boy- and girl-headed households, a fact confirmation from the person in charge; for households with many children, a family relation certificate when the head of household is not a parent
• If applying for bill deduction: one bill for electricity, city gas or district heating (the maintenance fee bill for apartments)
• If proof for a child in foster care is needed: a foster care confirmation
• Application on someone’s behalf: a copy of the agent’s ID and a power of attorney confirming the agency

A Policy Reporters article introduced that if you received the benefit the previous year and your income and household characteristics have not changed much, automatic reapplication through administrative network checks may proceed. It also says this year’s usage amount can be checked on the Energy Voucher website from July 1. However, your eligibility may have changed, so be sure to check whether an automatic application was made.

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Easy-to-Miss Points

• If you apply late, the usage period may be shortened. December 31 is the application deadline, not the usage deadline.
• Bill deduction applies only to bills issued within the usage period. If your bill payment method changes because of a move or a contract change, tell the help center first.
• With the National Happiness Card, use is recognized only when payment is completed. Even if there is a balance, you may not be able to use it after the period ends, so check in advance.
• If it overlaps with other energy welfare benefits, duplicate support may not be possible.
• If you replaced a briquette boiler with another type of boiler after January 2026, check separately whether you are eligible for the Briquette Conversion Energy Voucher.

The Briquette Conversion Energy Voucher is for recipients of basic livelihood benefits, near-poverty households, seniors, people with disabilities, single-parent families and boy- and girl-headed households that replaced a briquette boiler with a non-briquette boiler. The support details and supporting documents are separate, so check the documents you need, such as proof of a briquette conversion support decision from the Korea Energy Foundation or a local government, and a boiler installation or construction confirmation.

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Pre-Application Checklist

Here are the points that confuse first-time applicants the most, in order. Check them one by one from the top.

• Check whether your household receives one or more of the livelihood, medical, housing or education benefits
• Check whether you or a household member fits a characteristic: senior, infant or young child, person with a disability, pregnant woman, person with a disease, single parent, boy- and girl-headed household, or many children
• Decide which energy (electricity, city gas or district heating) you will receive through bill deduction, and prepare the utility bill or maintenance fee bill
• Check whether you have received or will receive other energy support, such as emergency welfare fuel costs or briquette coupons
• If you visit the community service center, bring the application form and the necessary supporting documents all at once

If it feels complicated, it is quicker to ask the Energy Voucher integrated help center (1600-3190) or the community service center staff than to puzzle over it alone. If you have a family member who has difficulty getting around, you can also use an application on their behalf or an ex officio application.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q. I’m applying for the first time this year. Where do I go?

Visit the community service center (eup/myeon/dong) for the address on your resident registration abstract, or apply on the Bokjiro website. For questions, you can get guidance from the Energy Voucher integrated help center (1600-3190).

Q. Does the amount I did not use in summer disappear?

According to a Policy Reporters article, this year the voucher was introduced as usable freely within the total amount during the usage period, without a summer/winter distinction. However, please check the specific balance lookup and carry-over method on the Energy Voucher website or with the help center.

Q. I received the emergency welfare fuel cost. Can I also get the Energy Voucher?

According to the Korea Energy Agency’s guide, households that received the winter fuel cost under the Emergency Welfare Support Act (October 2026 to March 2027) cannot receive overlapping support with the winter voucher.

Q. Which is more convenient, bill deduction or the National Happiness Card?

Bill deduction is more convenient for households that use electricity, city gas or district heating. Households that use kerosene, LPG or briquettes must pay with the National Happiness Card. Choose according to the energy you use when you apply.

This article summarizes public information for informational purposes. Eligibility, amounts, and schedules may vary depending on your personal situation and government announcements, so please confirm with the official institutions before applying.