South Korea Expands Early Parole as Prisons Reach 126% Capacity
The number of inmates paroled before serving 60 percent of their sentences surged in the first eight months of 2026 as South Korea sought to ease worsening prison overcrowding.
South Korea sharply increased the number of inmates released on parole before they had served 60 percent of their sentences, as correctional facilities operated far beyond their official capacity, according to justice ministry data disclosed by an opposition lawmaker.
A total of 634 inmates received such early parole between January and August 2026, Rep. Joo Jin-woo of the main opposition People Power Party said Sunday. That was about 3.7 times the 172 recorded during all of 2025. The annual number had remained below 40 from 2022 through 2024 before rising substantially last year.
The increase comes as overcrowding worsens across the country’s prison system. Correctional facilities were operating at 126.2 percent of capacity at the end of August, up from 122.1 percent in 2025, the data showed. A rate above 100 percent means the inmate population exceeds the number the facilities were designed to accommodate.
The Ministry of Justice has been widening access to early parole for elderly or ill inmates assessed as posing a low risk of reoffending. It has also said it plans to raise the overall number of early paroles by 30 percent from the previous year as part of efforts to reduce pressure on correctional institutions.
The figures highlight the difficult balance facing policymakers. Overcrowded prisons can strain staff, medical services and rehabilitation programs, while earlier release decisions can prompt public concern about whether risk assessments and post-release supervision are adequate. The data disclosed Sunday did not include a breakdown of the offenses committed by the 634 inmates or their subsequent reoffending rates.
Joo argued that the government should not transfer the risk created by overcrowding to the public. He called for early parole to be completely suspended for people convicted of serious crimes and for stronger monitoring of offenders required to wear electronic tracking devices.
The disclosure is likely to intensify scrutiny of how parole eligibility is determined and whether the correctional system has enough capacity to hold and rehabilitate inmates safely. It also raises questions about longer-term responses to overcrowding beyond accelerating release, including how authorities allocate prison space and supervise people after parole.
For now, the ministry’s expansion policy is focused on inmates deemed less likely to reoffend, while Joo’s criticism centers on drawing firmer limits around serious offenders. The widening gap between inmate numbers and available capacity suggests the debate over public safety, humane detention and correctional resources will remain a pressing policy issue.