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Overtime, night and holiday work pay in Korea: the 50% and 100% premiums, the 52-hour week and a calculator
Numbers checked against the official source on 2026-10-19
Korea's Labor Standards Act sets normal working time at 40 hours a week and 8 hours a day (Article 50), lets employer and worker agree to up to 12 more hours a week of overtime (Article 53), and requires an extra 50% of the ordinary wage for overtime and for night work between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., and for holiday work up to 8 hours, and 100% for holiday work beyond 8 hours (Article 56). 40 + 12 is the "52-hour week". The Act applies to workplaces with 5 or more workers (Article 11).
Law text: Labor Standards Act as shown on the National Law Information Center, "[시행 2026. 10. 8.] [법률 제21533호, 2026. 4. 7., 일부개정]"; Enforcement Decree "[시행 2025. 10. 23.]". Read on 2026-10-19.
Is this the version in force?
The law pages carry a "시행예정법령" (upcoming law) image. The revision history lists the 2026-10-08 version as in force and five later versions (2026-12-08, 2026-12-10, 2027-01-01 twice, 2027-06-10) as upcoming, so on 2026-10-19 the 2026-10-08 text applies. Own revision dates of the articles used: Article 50 (2020), Article 53 paragraph 2 (2021) and paragraph 7 (2021), Article 56 (2018), Article 11 paragraph 3 (2008). None was amended in 2026. We did not read the later versions.
Premium table
| Work | Extra pay (on top of the ordinary wage) | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Overtime (hours beyond the normal limit) | At least 50% of the ordinary wage | Article 56(1) |
| Night work (10 p.m. to 6 a.m.) | At least 50% | Article 56(3) |
| Holiday work, up to 8 hours | 50% | Article 56(2) item 1 |
| Holiday work, over 8 hours | 100% | Article 56(2) item 2 |
Hour limits
| Limit | Rule |
|---|---|
| Normal week | 40 hours, excluding breaks (Article 50(1)) |
| Normal day | 8 hours, excluding breaks (Article 50(2)) |
| Waiting time under the employer's direction | Counts as working time (Article 50(3)) |
| Overtime by agreement | Up to 12 hours a week (Article 53(1)) |
| Special approval | With the Minister's approval and the worker's consent, in special circumstances (Article 53(4)) |
| Certain industries (land, water and air transport, other transport services, health) | Written agreement with the worker representative may exceed 12 hours (Article 59(1)) |
Paragraph 3 of Article 53 (an extra 8 hours for employers with under 30 workers) is printed with a note that it was valid only until 31 December 2022, so we do not rely on it.
What "ordinary wage" means
Enforcement Decree Article 6: the ordinary wage is the hourly, daily, weekly, monthly or piece-rate amount set to be paid regularly and uniformly for scheduled work. A monthly wage is turned into an hourly wage by dividing by the monthly ordinary-wage standard hours (the weekly standard hours times the average number of weeks in a year, divided by 12). For which allowances count, ask the labour office.
Pay calculator
Enter your hourly ordinary wage and the hours of each kind you worked. The calculator multiplies hours by hourly wage by (1 + premium) for each kind and adds them. Each kind is calculated on its own: the Act does not say how to combine premiums when work is both overtime and at night, so do not enter the same hour twice.
Not covered: stacking of premiums, which pay items form the ordinary wage, flexible-hours schemes, and workplaces with 4 or fewer workers (the Decree lists, in an annex, which provisions apply to them). The Ministry of Employment and Labor desks listed on the law page: working hours 044-202-7545, wages 044-202-7548.
Where the pages differ
This page follows the Act itself. Not legal advice; confirm with the labour office. See also Minimum wage in Korea 2026, public holidays 2026, and the weekly holiday allowance page.
Checked 2026-10-19.
Official sources
- National Law Information Center — Labor Standards Act, Article 56 — overtime, night and holiday premiums; in force 2026-10-08 (checked 2026-10-19)
- National Law Information Center — Labor Standards Act, Article 50 — 40 hours a week, 8 hours a day (checked 2026-10-19)
- National Law Information Center — Labor Standards Act, Article 53 — 12 hours a week overtime limit (checked 2026-10-19)
- National Law Information Center — Labor Standards Act, Article 59 — special cases for certain industries (checked 2026-10-19)
- National Law Information Center — Labor Standards Act, Article 11 — applies to workplaces with 5 or more workers (checked 2026-10-19)
- National Law Information Center — Enforcement Decree, Article 6 — ordinary wage and hourly conversion; in force 2025-10-23 (checked 2026-10-19)
- National Law Information Center — Labor Standards Act revision history — version in force and upcoming versions (checked 2026-10-19)
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