Government legislation ministry rules regional doctor residency covers medical zones

The government legislation ministry said Tuesday that students applying for South Korea's new regional doctor training program satisfy residency requirements if they lived anywhere within a designated medical zone, rather than strictly in the municipality where their school is located.

Issued in response to an inquiry from the Health and Welfare Ministry regarding the Local Medical Personnel Training and Support Act, the ruling determines that the phrase "region where the school is located" refers to broader medical service or metropolitan zones defined in the act's enforcement decree. These zones often group multiple cities and counties together, ensuring students who attended school in one city while residing in another are not disqualified.

The legislation aims to train doctors who will serve in areas lacking adequate medical infrastructure for at least a decade after licensure.

Under the new system set to begin with the 2027 academic year, medical schools outside Seoul must allocate at least 10 percent of their admission quotas to this regional track. Selected students receive comprehensive financial support covering tuition, textbooks, clinical training fees, and living expenses. In exchange, graduates are obligated to work in designated underserved regions for ten years after obtaining their medical licenses.

Mandatory service locations are determined based on the high school service zone where the student was admitted.

Kwak Soon-heon, the health and welfare ministry's director-general for healthcare policy, emphasized the strategic importance of the regulatory framework. "With the enactment of these enforcement decrees and rules, we have established an institutional foundation to select talents who grew up in the regions and train them as core personnel for local healthcare," Kwak said. He added that the government intends to eliminate medical gaps and create an environment where essential care is accessible everywhere through the introduction of the regional doctor advanced track.