Korea's Carbon Neutral Point program pays households that cut electricity, water, or city gas by 5% or more against the same months of the past two years. Point tables, how to join, payout timing, and what rural homes and farms should check.
Before the winter bills arrive, there is one thing worth doing. Korea runs a program that pays you back, in cash or vouchers, for using less electricity and city gas than you did over the past two years. If you have not signed up, no amount of saving counts. It is called the Carbon Neutral Point (Energy), the renamed version of the old Carbon Point scheme.
Bottom line: Cut electricity, water, or city gas by 5% or more against the average of the same months over the past two years, and you earn points every half-year. One point is worth up to ₩2, so the cap is ₩100,000 a year. Sign-up at cpoint.or.kr needs only your KEPCO customer number. Rural homes where you are registered as resident qualify, but agricultural-rate electricity and weekend farm-shed meters are not addressed in the official guidance, so call 1660-2030 first.
Earlier: how carbon reduction turns into money in agriculture is covered in Agricultural Carbon Credits: Verification Is What Pays.
1. What the program is
Households and commercial buildings earn points for cutting electricity, water, and city gas use. Since January 1, 2025 it has been run by the Korea Environmental Industry and Technology Institute. The apartment-complex track was abolished in 2024, so only households and commercial facilities take part now.
Seoul residents do not use this program. Seoul runs its own Eco Mileage scheme (ecomileage.seoul.go.kr).
The same website also has a separate green living track that pays up to ₩70,000 per person a year for 17 everyday actions, such as e-receipts (₩10 each), reusable cups (₩300 each), or returning old phones (₩1,000 each). It has its own sign-up and payout. This post covers the energy track.
2. How much you get
The baseline is the average use in the same months over the past two years (one year if two are not available). Evaluation happens twice a year, for the first and second half.
| Reduction (per half-year) | Electricity | Water | City gas |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5% to under 10% | 5,000P | 750P | 3,000P |
| 10% to under 15% | 10,000P | 1,500P | 6,000P |
| 15% or more | 15,000P | 2,000P | 8,000P |
One point is worth up to ₩2. Cutting all three by 15% earns 25,000P per half-year, which comes to ₩100,000 a year at most. There is also a maintenance incentive (electricity 3,000P, water 450P, gas 1,800P) for households that keep use low; the official pages give different figures for how many consecutive periods are needed, so check after joining.
Example: a home that averaged 1,800kWh over the winter half-year (October to March) in the past two years and uses 1,600kWh this year has cut about 11%. That falls in the 10% band: 10,000P, up to ₩20,000, on top of the lower electricity bill itself.
3. How to join
| Step | Detail |
|---|---|
| Where | cpoint.or.kr, or the city/county office |
| Numbers needed | 10-digit KEPCO customer number, water account number, city gas customer number |
| Included in fees | Items paid through building maintenance fees need no number |
| Payout options | Cash, vouchers, garbage bags, local tax payment, transit card, etc., by local government |
Payout timing, per the program FAQ: first-half points are paid in November to December of the same year, second-half points in May to June of the next year. Some local governments list June and December, so check your local notice.
4. Where to cut in winter
Points reward the size of the reduction, so the biggest-use season matters most. For rural homes and farms, that is winter heating.
The Korea Energy Agency recommends 20℃ indoors in winter and says each 1℃ lower cuts heating energy use by about 7%. In its February 2025 release, sealing leaks with bubble wrap, weather strips, and curtains cut monthly city gas use by 5.5%. Those two steps alone can reach the 5% gas band.
For electricity, standby power and winter electric heaters are the big items. A smart plug with energy monitoring shows how much an electric blanket, fan heater, or fridge actually uses.
5. Do rural homes, farm sheds, and farms qualify?
| Case | What official guidance confirms | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Rural home where you are resident | Eligible under the household track | Join online |
| Weekend farm shed or second home | Program is run by residential address; no explicit rule | Call 1660-2030 first |
| Agricultural-rate electricity | No rule on tariff type on the website | Call 1660-2030 |
We could not confirm either of the last two from public guidance. Also note that weekend sheds have irregular use, so a year of fewer visits can look like a large “reduction.”
6. Farms: look at the low-carbon farming program instead
Payments for cutting emissions through farming practices come from the Ministry of Agriculture’s low-carbon agriculture program, a separate scheme.
| Practice (rice, 2026 notices) | Per hectare |
|---|---|
| Mid-season drainage | ₩150,000 |
| Alternate wetting and drying | ₩160,000 |
| Biochar application | ₩364,000 |
| Autumn plowing | ₩460,000 |
Individual farms do not apply alone. In the 2026 notices, applicants were farming corporations or producer groups with 15ha or more of basic direct-payment farmland. Smaller farms should ask whether their village cooperative takes part. For livestock, low-methane feed paid ₩55,000 per head of cattle; 2026 applications closed in May.
7. Checklist
- Outside Seoul, join at cpoint.or.kr. In Seoul, use Eco Mileage.
- Find your KEPCO, water, and gas customer numbers on the bills.
- Baseline is the two-year same-month average; 5% is the minimum cut.
- Keep 20℃ indoors; each 1℃ lower saves about 7% of heating energy.
- Sealing leaks cut gas use 5.5% in the Energy Agency case.
- Ask 1660-2030 about agricultural electricity and weekend-shed meters.
- Farming practices are paid through the low-carbon agriculture program.
8. Conclusion
It is not big money: ₩100,000 a year at most. But once you join, every reduction is scored automatically, and the lower bills are yours anyway. Winter is when use peaks, so it is also when there is the most to cut. Lower the thermostat by a degree, seal the gaps, and find the appliances that use the most.
How to seal drafts in a farm shed is in Weather Strips and Window Insulation Film.
References
- Carbon Neutral Point (Energy) website: incentive guide, sign-up guide, FAQ (cpoint.or.kr, checked October 6, 2026).
- Carbon Neutral Point notices: apartment-complex track abolished (December 20, 2024); operator changed to Korea Environmental Industry and Technology Institute (from January 1, 2025).
- Carbon Neutral Point green living track (cpoint.or.kr/netzero).
- Incheon Metropolitan City program page (up to ₩100,000 per year).
- Korea Energy Agency press release (February 28, 2025: bubble wrap, weather strips, and curtains cut monthly city gas use by 5.5%); Korea Energy Agency guidance on 20℃ and 7% per 1℃.
- Korea.kr policy briefing on winter energy saving (January 18, 2024).
- Suncheon and Paju 2026 low-carbon agriculture program notices; Ministry of Agriculture low-methane feed release.
- Point values, payout methods, and timing can differ by local government.