How Long-Service Leave (장기근속 휴가 / Refresh Leave) Actually Works at a Korean Company — Sabbaticals, Gold Bars, and How to Earn That 10-Day Break Without Burning Out First
Last updated: May 2026
A friend at Naver's overseas office told me she nearly quit at year four. The work was fine, the pay was okay, but she just felt invisible. Then her Korean manager casually mentioned: "You know you get a refresh trip next year, right? Ten days off, two million won, you pick the destination." She stayed. Five years later she's still there. That one conversation rewired how she saw the next decade of her career.
If you've been at a Korean company for a few years and nobody's explained 장기근속 휴가 (jangki-geunsok hyuga) or 리프레시 휴가 to you, this post is for you. Korean companies have an entire ritual around long-service rewards that most foreign employees never hear about until a Korean coworker drops it casually at lunch. Let's fix that.
What is 장기근속 휴가 / 리프레시 휴가, exactly?
Long-service leave at a Korean company is extra paid time off plus a cash bonus given at specific tenure milestones — usually 5, 10, 15, and 20 years. It is separate from your regular annual leave. You do not lose your PTO when you take it.
- The Korean terms you'll hear:
- 장기근속 휴가 (jangki-geunsok hyuga) — "long-service leave"
- 리프레시 휴가 (refresh hyuga) — the more modern, IT-industry-friendly term
- 안식년 (ansik-nyeon) — literally "sabbatical year," used by a smaller number of companies (Naver, some universities)
- 장기근속 포상 (jangki-geunsok posang) — "long-service award," the cash/gift portion
It's a benefit that's almost universal at Korean conglomerates (대기업) and very common at mid-sized companies. Smaller startups sometimes skip it — which is itself a signal worth noting before you accept an offer.
Typical milestone packages (2026 market standard)
The exact numbers vary by industry, but here's what you'll see at most established Korean companies operating abroad:
| Tenure | Extra paid leave | Cash bonus | Extras |
|--------|------------------|------------|--------|
| 3 years (some IT firms) | 3–5 days | $200–500 | gift card |
| 5 years | 5–7 days | ₩500K–₩1M (~$370–$740) | hotel/travel voucher |
| 10 years | 10–15 days | ₩2M–₩3M (~$1,500–$2,200) | gold (3.75g), plaque |
| 15 years | 15 days | ₩3M–₩5M (~$2,200–$3,700) | family travel support |
| 20 years | 20 days–1 month | ₩5M–₩10M (~$3,700–$7,400) | sabbatical option |
Samsung, LG, Hyundai, SK, Naver, Kakao all run packages in this range. Some go further — Naver historically gave 1 month off at year 10. SK at one point mandated 2 consecutive weeks of vacation per year for every employee. The trend in 2025–2026 has been front-loading these milestones because foreign employees won't wait 5 years for the first reward.
Why your Korean coworker takes it without guilt and you don't
Here's the cultural piece nobody explains. When a Korean employee hits year 5, they treat the refresh leave as earned, expected, and almost mandatory. They book the trip, take the full week, post photos on KakaoTalk, come back tanned, and nobody side-eyes them. You, on the other hand, probably feel weird taking 10 consecutive days off.
That feeling is wrong. Here's why:
- The leave is logged separately in HR systems. Your manager's headcount math accounts for it. You're not "using up the team's goodwill."
- Not taking it actually looks bad — Korean HR reads it as a sign you don't trust the company or aren't planning to stay.
- The cash bonus is taxed as a one-time award, which (depending on country) is often more favorable than regular salary.
If you've ever read how to take annual leave at a Korean company without feeling guilty, this is the same principle on steroids. Refresh leave is literally designed to be taken in full.
How to actually claim it: a step-by-step
Step 1: Find out if you qualify (most foreign employees skip this)
Open your employment handbook — it might be called Welfare Handbook, 복리후생 안내, or similar. Search for "장기근속," "long-service," "refresh," or "anniversary leave." If you can't find it, ask HR directly: "Does our office follow the headquarters' long-service leave policy?" This question alone surfaces benefits a lot of people miss.
Step 2: Calculate your eligibility date
Tenure is usually counted from your official join date, not your contract renewal date. Probation period counts. If you joined May 2021, your 5-year milestone is May 2026 — apply 1–2 months before.
Step 3: Apply in writing, not verbally
Send an email to your manager + HR with subject "Long-service leave application — [your name] — [milestone year]." Include proposed dates. Korean HR systems love paper trails; verbal "I'll take it next month" requests get lost.
Step 4: Use it consecutively
Splitting 10 days into single-day chunks defeats the purpose and might disqualify the cash bonus at some companies. Take 7+ days in a row. The whole point is psychological reset.
Step 5: Don't apologize when you come back
Resist the urge to over-explain or thank everyone for "covering." It was your earned benefit. A simple "Good to be back, thanks for handling things" is enough. Anything more signals you didn't deserve it.
Red flags if your company says "we don't offer it"
If you're at a Korean company and HR tells you long-service leave doesn't exist:
- Ask if the headquarters offers it. If yes and your office doesn't, that's a localization gap worth raising.
- Ask what the retention strategy is. If there's no clear answer past year 3, you're at a company that doesn't plan for long tenure.
- Check Glassdoor / JobKorea reviews for the same employer.
This is the kind of due diligence that separates a 5-year career from a 18-month resume line. When you're job-hunting through HangulJobs, benefits like refresh leave should be part of your offer comparison — not an afterthought.
FAQ
Q1. Does long-service leave roll over if I don't take it?
A. Usually no. Most Korean companies require you to use it within 12 months of the milestone date. If you delay, it expires. The cash bonus, however, is paid at the milestone and doesn't expire.
Q2. If I leave the company before my 5-year mark, do I lose anything?
A. You don't lose accrued PTO, but you forfeit the upcoming refresh leave and cash bonus. Some employees deliberately stay an extra 3–6 months to hit the milestone. Worth doing the math if you're close.
Q3. Can I take refresh leave alongside parental leave or sabbatical?
A. Most companies allow stacking, but rules differ. Ask HR to confirm in writing before you plan a 6-week trip. The default safe assumption is refresh leave can be added before or after another leave, but not mid-way through.
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Long-service leave is the most underused benefit at Korean companies abroad — purely because foreign employees don't know it exists, don't ask, or feel weird taking 10 days off. Don't be that person. The benefit is in your contract for a reason. Take the trip. Post the photos. Come back ready to do another five years.
