5 years of service, stable pay
Input: 3-month wages 9,000,000, no bonus, no leave allowance
Result: Roughly 15,000,000 KRW of severance pay
Korea Severance Pay Calculator
Estimate Korean statutory severance pay from your hire date, retirement date, last 3 months of wages, annual bonus and unused-leave allowance, based on the average daily wage × 30 days × years of service formula.
Employment Information
Sum of base pay and fixed allowances paid over the last 3 months.
3/12 of the past 12-month bonus is added to the average wage base.
3/12 of the past 12-month leave allowance is added to the average wage base.
Formula and decision logic
Korean statutory severance pay equals the daily average wage times 30 days, prorated by total years of service, with the daily wage derived from the last 3 months of compensation including bonus and leave allowance.
Daily average wage = (3 months of pay + annual bonus × 3/12 + annual leave allowance × 3/12) / days in last 3 months
Severance pay = daily average wage × 30 × (days worked / 365)
Worked examples
With annual bonus and leave allowance
Input: 3-month wages 9,000,000, bonus 4,000,000, leave 1,200,000
Result: Daily average wage and severance both rise
How to use this calculator
- 1Pick your hire date and retirement date
- 2Enter the last 3 months of wages
- 3Add annual bonus and leave allowance if applicable
- 4Review the estimated severance and daily/monthly average wage
How to read the result
- Severance is most sensitive to the last 3 months of compensation, so any bonus paid right before retirement can swing the result.
- Less than one year of continuous service typically means no statutory severance.
Common input mistakes
- Using only base salary and skipping bonus and leave allowance.
- Treating partial months as full months when counting service period.
Frequently asked questions
How is severance pay calculated?
Multiply daily average wage by 30 days, then by years of service (days / 365). Average wage = (last 3 months of pay + annual bonus × 3/12 + annual leave allowance × 3/12) / days in last 3 months.
Can workers with less than 1 year of service receive severance?
Korean labor law requires at least one year of continuous service for statutory severance. Without a more favorable company rule, fewer than 365 days means no severance.
How are bonuses and leave allowances reflected?
Annual bonus and leave allowance each contribute 3/12 (the equivalent of 3 months) to the numerator of the average-wage formula.
Why might the actual payout differ?
Company rules or collective agreements may exceed the statutory minimum, and the higher of average wage vs. ordinary wage is normally used.