South Korea is considering more than doubling employment subsidies for young people who take jobs in regional areas, with workers in Special Population Decline Support Zones set to receive ₩800,000 a month for two years, or up to ₩19.2 million, under a plan being reviewed for announcement as early as next week. The proposed Youth Employment Recovery Plan comes as the number of young people giving up job searches or remaining economically inactive has risen, prompting the government to strengthen direct support for employed youth. The biggest change under discussion is to the Youth Employment Leap Incentive, which currently pays eligible workers aged 34 or younger ₩300,000 a month for two years, up to ₩7.2 million, if they work at least six months in designated regional areas. Subsidies for Preferential Support Zones and general non-capital regions are also under review for increases, while additional support for companies expanding youth hiring in regional areas and a possible, lower-paying extension to capital-region workers are also being examined. The government aims to create more than 200,000 quality jobs in the private and public sectors by 2030, but observers have raised concerns about fiscal costs and whether higher cash incentives would generate new hiring or mainly subsidize jobs that would have been created anyway.