The national pension is projected to lose 860-thousand contributing subscribers over the next five years while over two-point-four million people are expected to begin collecting their pensions amid a rapidly aging population.

According to a report by the National Pension Research Institute on Thursday, the number of monthly contributors is forecast to gradually decline to 21-point-six million by late 2027, down three-point-eight percent from late 2022.

The total number of subscribers, which started at four-point-four million in late 1988, shot up to surpass 20 million in 2012, hitting an all-time high of 22-point-five million last year.

On the other hand, the number of pension recipients, which stood at six-point-six million as of late last year, is forecast to exceed nine million by late 2027, a 36-point-two-percent jump.

While fund reserves will likely continue to expand, surpassing one quadrillion won, or around 770 billion U.S. dollars, in 2025, the value of pension payouts is expected to surpass the revenue from premiums starting in 2041, before being completely depleted by 2055.