Taking lateness fines, work clothes costs, or payment for defects out of your pay is illegal

When does this apply to you?

It applies if the deductions (money taken out) on your 급여명세서 (pay slip) include things like these:

• Fines for being late or absent (example: 10,000원 for each time you are late)
• Costs for work clothes, safety shoes, gloves, or a safety helmet
• Payment for defective products, broken machines, or lost items
• Items you cannot understand, such as "training fee", "introduction fee", or "management fee"
• Dormitory or food costs you never agreed to, or more than the amount you agreed to
• Money you borrowed from the boss, taken out of your pay without telling you

If you are late or absent, the company may not pay you for the time you did not work. This is not a deduction. You simply get no wage for time you did not work. This is allowed. But if the company takes more than the time you were late (example: 1 hour of pay cut for 10 minutes late, or a 10,000원 fine), it is illegal.

Legal and illegal deductions

Item	Legal or not	Reason / conditions
Income tax and local income tax	Legal	Taken out by law (withholding tax)
National pension, health insurance, and employment insurance fees	Legal	Taken out by law. The employer pays 100% of industrial accident insurance, so it cannot be taken from your pay
Dormitory and food costs	Legal only under conditions	Only up to the amount written in the 표준근로계약서 (standard employment contract) that you agreed to in writing. For electricity, gas, etc., the rule is to settle the amount you actually used, after use
Labor union fees	Legal only under conditions	When the collective agreement (agreement between union and company) says so
Fines for being late or absent	Illegal	Article 20 bans setting penalties in advance. Only pay for the time you did not work may be taken out
Costs of work clothes, safety shoes, safety helmet	Illegal	The employer must provide protective equipment (Safety and Health Rules, Article 32)
Payment for defects or damage	Illegal	Article 43, full payment. Even if there was a loss, it cannot be taken straight out of your wages
Pay cut as punishment under the 취업규칙 (work rules)	Legal only with limits	Workplaces with 5 or more workers, written in the work rules, at most 1/2 of one day's average wage each time, and in total at most 1/10 of your monthly pay in one month (Article 95)
Departure guarantee insurance (출국만기보험)	Illegal	The employer pays this insurance, so it cannot be taken from your pay
Return cost insurance (귀국비용보험)	Check	The worker pays this insurance. But if it is taken from your pay, check that you agreed and that the amount is correct. If you are not sure, call 1577-0071

Pay cut limits in numbers

A pay cut is only possible when the company has 취업규칙 (work rules) and those rules include a pay cut as punishment, such as "pay cut after 3 times late". Even then, it is only allowed within the limits below (workplaces with 5 or more workers).

This example is for a person who earns the 2026 minimum wage of 2,156,880원 a month and does no overtime.

• Average wage for 1 day: about 70,333원 (3 months of wages ÷ 92 days)
• Limit for 1 pay cut: 70,333원 ÷ 2 = about 35,000원
• Limit for total pay cuts in one month: 2,156,880원 ÷ 10 = 215,688원

If the boss makes up a fine on the spot and it is not in the work rules, it is illegal from the start. These limits do not matter in that case.

Steps

1. Get your pay slip. The company must give you a pay slip every time it pays you (Article 48(2)). It must show each deduction and its amount. If you did not get one, ask by text message: "Please give me my 임금명세서 (pay slip)."
2. Check each deduction one by one. Compare them with the table above. Mark every item that is not income tax, the 4 social insurance fees, or housing and food costs you agreed to in writing.
3. Ask for the reason. Ask by text message or KakaoTalk: "On what basis did you take out ○○원 for ○○? Please show me the document I agreed to." The answer becomes evidence.
4. Do not sign any agreement to pay for damage or fines. Even if they say "You made defects, so sign here" or "Write that you will pay 10,000원 each time you are late", do not sign. As a rule, such a signature has no legal effect because it breaks Article 20. But the dispute will take longer.
5. Ask for your money back. Send this: "Please pay me the ○○원 that was wrongly taken from my ○ month wages by ○ month ○ day."
6. If they do not pay, file a complaint. A wrongful deduction counts as unpaid wages. File a complaint online at the 고용노동부 (Ministry of Employment and Labor) 노동포털 (Labor Portal) (labor.moel.go.kr), or at the 지방고용노동관서 (regional labor office) that covers your workplace. For how to do this, see the guide "How to report unpaid wages".

What to prepare

• Pay slips that show the deductions (several months), and bank records of your pay deposits
• Your 근로계약서 (employment contract) (standard employment contract) and any document where you agreed to housing and food costs (if you have one)
• Text messages, KakaoTalk messages, recordings, or photos of notices that demanded fines or payment for damage
• Receipts or card records for work clothes or safety shoes you bought with your own money
• Records of when you started and finished work (to check how late you were)

Important points

• For dormitory costs, written agreement is the key. If the amount is not in your contract, if they take more than you agreed to, or if they take dormitory costs for a dormitory you never lived in, all of these are wrongful deductions. For rules on housing and food costs, also see the guide "Check in 30 seconds if your pay is at least the minimum wage".
• "We paid your full wage and took the fine separately" is the same problem. Even if they collect cash, it is a penalty set in advance, so it may break Article 20. Write down the dates and amounts they collected.
• If you really caused a loss to the company, the company can make a claim in civil court. But it still cannot take it straight out of your pay. For normal mistakes made while working, a worker often does not have to pay, or has to pay much less. Call 1350 for advice before you sign anything.
• Money you borrowed or pay advances can be settled against your pay only within the amount you agreed to in writing. Taking it out without your agreement is a problem.
• You get your wages even if you do not write a 사직서 (resignation letter). The rule is that you must be paid within 14 days from the day you leave (Article 36). Be careful: if you sign after hearing "You must write a resignation letter to get paid", a dismissal (being fired) can be changed into quitting by your own choice.
• Like wages, after 3 years it is hard to get back money that was wrongly deducted.

Frequently asked questions

Q. My safety shoes wore out, so I bought new ones. The company took the cost out of my pay. A. As a rule, the employer must provide the protective equipment needed for the work. Take your receipt and pay slip and ask for advice at 1350 or 1577-0071.

Q. I made a mistake and 100 products were defective. The boss says he will take 500,000원 out of my pay. A. The company cannot take it straight out of your pay. To claim for a loss, the company must go through a separate process. Do not sign an agreement to pay for the damage. Get advice first.

Q. They take 10,000원 every time I am late. They say it is in the work rules. A. The company may take out pay for the time you were late (example: about 1,720원 for 10 minutes). A fine bigger than that may go over the Article 95 limit or break Article 20, even if it is in the work rules. Ask for a copy of the work rules.

Q. My pay slip shows "management fee 50,000원", but I do not know what it is. A. Ask by text message what the money is for and when you agreed to it. If they cannot explain it or have no agreement document, you can file a complaint about a wrongful deduction.

Q. Is it OK for them to take dormitory costs? A. If the amount is written in your standard employment contract and you agreed to it in writing, that amount is allowed. If you never agreed, or the amount is different, it is a problem.

Where to get help

Organization	Phone / website	What they help with
고용노동부 고객상담센터 (Ministry of Employment and Labor Call Center)	1350	Advice on whether a deduction is legal, and on filing a complaint
외국인력상담센터 (Counseling Center for Foreign Workers)	1577-0071	Checking your pay slip, 18 languages
외국인종합안내센터 (Immigration Contact Center)	1345	Information in many languages
고용노동부 노동포털 (Labor Portal)	labor.moel.go.kr	Filing a complaint online
안전보건공단 (Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency)	1644-4544	Questions about the rules for providing protective equipment