Job seekers read a bulletin board during the 2026 Incheon Job Fair at Incheon City Hall, Tuesday. Yonhap
Facing a cooling global economy and shifting supply chains, the port city of Incheon, west of Seoul, is turning to direct financial incentives to retain corporate interest and fuel its local labor market.
City officials said Friday that Incheon will deploy targeted employment subsidies, offering up to 6 million won ($4,350) per new worker to eligible foreign-invested firms and relocating domestic companies. The initiative reflects a growing push among regional hubs outside of Seoul to aggressively court corporate capital as national economic growth moderates.
Under the plan, the metropolitan government will distribute 1 million won monthly per eligible employee for up to six months. The measure targets companies that expanded their payrolls significantly over the past year or moved operations to the city, which sits adjacent to the capital and hosts the country's primary international airport.
To qualify, foreign-invested entities must hold a foreign equity ratio of at least 30 percent and have added more than 20 full-time domestic workers to their payrolls in 2025 compared to the previous year. For domestic enterprises, the program targets firms that uprooted their headquarters, factories or research facilities from other regions and resettled in Incheon, provided they hired more than 20 local residents.
