How South Korea is tackling its super-aging problem – and what other aging nations can learn from its experience

South Korea's population over 65 hit 22.1% by August 2026, reaching super-aged status in about 24 years — far faster than Japan's 35-year transition — leaving little time to prepare pension and healthcare systems for the shift.

The national pension fund is projected to run dry by 2054, and South Korea already has the OECD's highest old-age poverty rate, at 39.7% of those 66 and older living on less than half the median household income. Many retirees are asset-rich in real estate but cash-poor, leaning on reverse mortgages and a 2025 reform gradually raising pension contributions from 9% to 13% by 2033.

Older South Koreans now work longer than in any other OECD country, often into their early 70s in lower-paid second careers, while a 2008 long-term care insurance program strains under rising demand — 31.9% of those over 80 were certified for benefits in 2024.

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