South Korea’s Supreme Court has ruled that same-sex couples are entitled to the same National Health Insurance Service benefits as heterosexual couples — a landmark decision in a country where same-sex marriage remains unrecognized under law. The ruling declared that denying benefits to same-sex partners constitutes discrimination that “violates human dignity and the right to pursue happiness.”
At a glance
- Supreme Court ruling: South Korea’s highest court upheld a lower court decision requiring the National Health Insurance Service to treat same-sex couples equally to heterosexual ones for spousal coverage purposes.
- Same-sex partnership rights: The case originated when So Seong-wook and Kim Yong-min filed suit in 2021 after the NHIS revoked spousal benefits it had previously granted — and then demanded repayment.
- Marriage equality gap: South Korea still does not legally recognize same-sex marriage, meaning this ruling addresses a specific coverage right rather than broader legal equality — a meaningful but partial step.
A five-year fight for a basic benefit
The story behind the ruling is a long one. So Seong-wook and Kim Yong-min held a wedding ceremony in May 2019 C.E., even though South Korean law did not allow them to formally marry. So registered as a dependent under Kim’s insurance plan in February 2020 C.E. — only to have the NHIS reverse that decision eight months later, calling it an administrative error.
The agency then asked So to repay the benefits he had received. The couple responded by filing an administrative lawsuit.
Their case wound through multiple courts over three years. The Seoul Administrative Court initially sided with the NHIS. So appealed, and the Seoul High Court ruled in his favor in February 2023 C.E. The NHIS escalated the case to the Supreme Court — which ultimately upheld the right to equal coverage.
What the ruling means in practice
South Korea’s National Health Insurance Service is the country’s universal public health insurer, covering the vast majority of the population. Spousal dependent status under the NHIS carries real financial weight — it determines access to subsidized medical care for partners who are not separately insured.
By ruling that denying this benefit to same-sex couples is discriminatory, the Supreme Court has extended a concrete, practical protection to a group that had no legal pathway to claim it before.
Chief Justice Jo Hee-de’s framing was notable. The court did not simply say the denial was procedurally wrong — it said it was a violation of human dignity. That language carries moral and legal weight beyond this specific case.
Regional context and what advocates say
South Korea joins a small but growing number of Asian jurisdictions where courts or legislatures have moved to recognize same-sex relationships in some form. Taiwan legalized same-sex marriage in 2019 C.E., becoming the first place in Asia to do so. Japan’s courts have increasingly signaled that the country’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, though no national legislation has followed.
Amnesty International’s East Asia researcher Boram Jang welcomed the decision while noting how much further South Korea has to go. “Today’s ruling is a historic victory for equality and human rights in South Korea,” she said. “While this decision is a major milestone, the case itself is a sobering reminder of the lengthy judicial processes that same-sex couples must endure to secure basic rights that should be universally guaranteed.”
Jang called on South Korean authorities to go further — legalizing marriage equality and passing a comprehensive anti-discrimination law. South Korea has debated a broad anti-discrimination law for more than two decades without passing one, a gap that advocates say leaves LGBTQ+ individuals, people with disabilities, and other groups without adequate legal protection.
Progress with eyes open
This ruling does not change South Korea’s marriage law, and it does not create a general right to equal treatment for same-sex couples across all legal domains. LGBTQ+ individuals in South Korea still face significant social stigma, and public opinion on same-sex marriage, while shifting, remains divided. The court’s decision is narrow in legal scope even as it is broad in symbolic meaning.
Still, what So Seong-wook and Kim Yong-min did — file a lawsuit, appeal it twice, and take it to the country’s highest court — produced a precedent that extends a real right to real people. That is how legal change often works: one case, one couple, one ruling at a time.
For the estimated hundreds of thousands of LGBTQ+ adults in South Korea, the ruling is a signal that the country’s judiciary is willing to use the language of dignity and equality — even where the legislature has not yet followed.
Read more
For more on this story, see: LGBTQ Nation
For more from Good News for Humankind, see:
- Alzheimer’s risk cut in half by drug in landmark prevention trial
- Indigenous land rights win at COP30 protects 160 million hectares
- The Good News for Humankind archive on LGBTQ+ rights
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