Seoul city is offering transport subsidies for pregnant women, but the measure is limited to Korean residents, casting questions on the inclusiveness of the city’s policies.

The Seoul city government has been offering pregnant women living in the city 700,000 won ($538) each in transportation vouchers since July 1. However, depending on their residency status, some pregnant mothers may not receive the voucher, even if they are bearing a child of South Korean nationality.

According to the city’s municipal ordinances, mothers must finish their resident registration six months prior to receiving the voucher.

Local reports said a Vietnamese mother was bearing a South Korean child -- having married a Korean man six years ago -- applied for the subsidy but was recently rejected by the city government.

The Vietnamese woman had reportedly applied for the vouchers as the city promoted the program for women who have lived in Seoul for more than six months.

The city government confirmed it could not provide the voucher under the current municipal ordinances.

An official from the Seoul city government said it is currently reviewing options to make changes in the related municipal ordinance to make the voucher program more inclusive.

The revision of the ordinance could take time and could also potentially fail to pass the Seoul city council.

The voucher program was initially made to relieve the financial burden of families with babies on the way as part of Mayor Oh Se-hoon‘s campaign pledges.

The city government previously estimated the number of applicants to reach 43,000. The government also anticipated that some 9.6 billion won would be spent on the voucher program.

(ws@heraldcorp.com)