All South Koreans set to become a year younger from tomorrow after new laws

South Koreans will become at least a year younger from tomorrow (Wednesday) as the nation, which traditionally counts newborns as one-year-old, joins international standards, reported the 24NewsHD TV channel.

South Korean assembly passed laws on Tuesday to scrap its traditional method of counting ages and adopt the international standard - a shift that will make its citizens either 1 or 2 years younger on official documents from Wednesday.

The revision is aimed at reducing unnecessary socioeconomic costs because legal and social disputes as well as confusion persist due to the different ways of calculating age.

As of Wednesday, all judicial and administrative areas in the country will begin using the international standard or calendar age.

South Koreans are usually referred to as one to two years older than people elsewhere because the time spent in the womb is counted, the only major country that has the practice. The traditional counting system was largely used in social settings and in the workplace, where age hierarchies are considered important.

A separate system also exists for conscription purposes or calculating the legal age to drink alcohol and smoke.

President Yoon Suk Yeol sought the change, widely backed by public opinion when he ran for office last year.

South Koreans won’t need to update any documents or IDs since the age used for government forms is based on the international system, just like it is for retirement, receiving a pension, and voting.

Mandatory military service and school admissions follow calendar age which considers the year of birth.

Stores use calendar age and not “Korean age” to ensure someone was over 19 years old.