How To Get The National Happiness Card For Pregnant Women In Korea

Last Updated on September 17, 2026

With becoming pregnant in Korea comes a whole new set of rules, information, Korean vocabulary lists, shops to find, doctors to meet and well, just a lot of stuff to learn about. One of those things is the Pretty Mom card (고운맘카드) or National Happiness Card (국민행복카드) which all pregnant women, foreign and Korean alike, as long as they’re paying into the National Health Insurance system can get.

This card is a pregnancy benefit that pregnant women can apply for in Korea, and this article is specifically about getting it: what it’s worth, what paperwork you need, and how the application actually goes. For the bigger picture of pregnancy in Korea, this is one piece of a longer story I’ve written across several posts; see the end of this article for the rest of it.

(This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a certain percentage of a sale if you purchase after clicking. These funds go to maintain the site… and if there’s any left over, to a bottle of red wine to go with dinner. ^^)

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Having a child is of course an expensive feat and the expenses just don’t stop, so my mom tells me. The Pretty Mom Card, which changed names to the National Happiness Card, is supposed to help offset the high cost of having a child in Korea and it is certainly helpful. The card can be used at any hospital or clinic for pregnancy related visits.

What The Card Is Actually Worth

I used to hedge on this number because it changed year to year, but as of the current government guide, the figure is confirmed: ₩1,000,000 for a single pregnancy, ₩1,400,000 for twins or more, with an additional ₩200,000 if you’re giving birth in a designated underserved birth area. The voucher is valid for two years, either from your due date if you apply while pregnant, or from the birth date if you apply after. It doesn’t hurt to double-check the exact figure with your bank or hospital when you apply, since these amounts are set by government notice and do get revised, but this is the real number as of this writing, not a placeholder.

FYI: National Happiness Card vs. i-Happiness Card: these are not the same thing.

The National Happiness Card (국민행복카드) is what this article is about: the voucher for pregnancy and childbirth medical expenses. The i-Happiness Card (아이행복카드) is a different card entirely, used later on to manage government daycare and kindergarten subsidies once your child is enrolled. The names are close enough that it’s an easy mix-up, and I made the same mix-up myself before I had reason to sort it out. If you’re pregnant right now, this article is the card you need. The i-Happiness Card comes into play once you’re researching daycare, which I cover in the family guide linked below.

If your baby also ends up with a Korean resident registration number (through a Korean parent, dual citizenship, or recognized refugee status), several more vouchers can land on this same physical card after birth, including the First Meeting Voucher, worth ₩2,000,000 for a first child and ₩3,000,000 for a second or later child. I’ve laid it out in full in Having a Baby in Korea as a Foreigner: A Resident’s Guide to Benefits, Leave, and Paperwork.

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How to get the National Happiness Card In Korea

What to get from the doctor:

1. Pregnancy Certificate (임신확인서 / imsin hwaginseo) 
   1. At the top of the certificate, it will say 건강보험 임신 – 출산 진료비 지급 신청서 (Application for Medical Insurance Premium for Pregnancy and Childbirth). In the middle of the page, you’ll see 임신 출산 확인 (Pregnancy and Fertility Check)
   2. Many doctors will only offer this document after hearing the heartbeat to establish viability. Though, some will give it to you earlier. Just ask. 
   3. They will ask how you will use the pregnancy certificate. Tell them it’s for the National Happiness Card (국민행복카드). More on that below.
   4. MAKE COPIES of the certificate because other offices that you need to visit to get other services/benefits may keep them for their records. 
2. Medical Certificate (진단서 / jindanseo)Fee: W15,000 Korean, W20,000 English
   1. This is the official document that states you are, in fact, pregnant. 
   2. It must include your due date which the doctor will most likely include along with how far along you were on the day you went in for your first pregnant ultrasound. 
   3. You will need this document when you tell your employer you are pregnant, sign up for prenatal insurance, and “Pregnant Women First” Badge.
3. The doctor may also give you a “pregnancy check-up” record which is a small booklet that you’re expected to bring with you to all of your subsequent check-ups.

Apply For The Pregnant Women First Badge (임산부 먼저) While You’re At It

This is the badge that gets you priority seating on the subway and bus, and since you’re already holding the exact paperwork it requires, there’s no reason to put it off.

Where: your local district health center (보건소 / bogeonso). Cut and paste 보건소 into Naver Maps to find the one closest to you, adding your gu (구) in front of it, for example 마포구보건소 for the Mapo District Health Office.

What to bring: your Pregnancy Certificate and your ARC or passport. If you haven’t gotten a Pregnancy Certificate yet, or haven’t confirmed the pregnancy with a doctor at all, you can walk in with just your ARC, and they’ll give you a pregnancy test on the spot to confirm before issuing anything.

What you get beyond the badge: while you’re there, it’s worth asking about the free iron and folic acid supplements many centers hand out, and checking the schedule for free prenatal yoga or breastfeeding classes. It’s a genuinely useful stop beyond the badge itself.

I cover the full context around the badge, including how Korean commuters actually respond to it, in Korean Pregnancy Traditions and Superstitions: What to Really Expect as a Foreign Mom; this is the short, practical version.

• Vouchers
  1. Health insurance Pregnancy and childbirth medical expenses support
  2. Support for pregnant and childbirth medical expenses for adolescent mothers
  3. Diaper and infant formula support
  4. Energy Voucher Support
  5. Eight kinds of social service projects
  6. Babysitting service support
  7. Female Youth Sanitary Napkin Voucher Support

* Indicates which vouchers are offered to foreign/foreign (non-Korean) married couples

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Where This Fits In The Bigger Story

Are you having a baby in Korea? I’ve written quite a few posts on my experience, and together they cover pregnancy through the first birthday. Here’s where to go next depending on where you are:

• Having a Baby in Korea as a Foreigner: A Resident’s Guide to Benefits, Leave, and Paperwork — the full legal and financial picture, including exactly who qualifies for what
• Korean Pregnancy Traditions and Superstitions: What to Really Expect as a Foreign Mom — the cultural side of pregnancy
• Giving Birth in Korea: What To Expect as a Foreign Woman — labor and delivery day
• After Giving Birth in Korea: Birth Certificates, Subsidies, and Vaccinations — everything right after
• Korean Post-Natal Hotel: What Postpartum Care Is Like In Korea — if you’re considering a 산후조리원 stay
• Korean First Birthday (Doljanchi): Complete Guide to Traditions, Doljabi and Hanbok — once you make it to year one

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FAQ

Do I need to apply for the National Happiness Card and the Pregnant Women First badge separately?

Yes, they’re two different applications at two different offices, the card at a bank, the badge at your local district health center, but both use the same Pregnancy Certificate and ARC or passport, so it’s efficient to do both once you have that paperwork in hand.

What does the Pregnant Women First badge actually do?

It’s a visible signal, meant to be worn on a bag or jacket, that helps you get priority seating on the subway and bus without having to ask or explain yourself.

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