Seoul 'Self-Employed Survival Fund' Payments Start Today... First Phase Supports Over 9,000 People

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it will begin the first phase of payments on the 4th for the 'Self-Employed Survival Fund,' which provides up to 1.4 million KRW in cash support to small business owners with annual sales under 200 million KRW who have been struggling due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). Following a qualification review for 10,000 businesses based on the order of application, 9,073 businesses (individuals) were selected as the first beneficiaries.

According to Seoul City, among the recipients on this day, 87% were single-person self-employed individuals, totaling 7,935, and businesses with annual sales under 50 million KRW accounted for the majority (56%) of all beneficiaries.

By industry, retail businesses such as clothing, food and beverages, and stationery were the most numerous with 1,318 businesses, followed by transportation and restaurant businesses. By region, small business owners in Jung-gu were the most with a total of 552 businesses, followed by Songpa-gu and Gangnam-gu.

The Self-Employed Survival Fund is a policy that provides 700,000 KRW per month for two months, totaling 1.4 million KRW, to self-employed individuals and small business owners (excluding certain industries such as entertainment, nightlife, and gambling) who had annual sales under 200 million KRW last year and have been registered as business operators in Seoul for more than six months as of the end of February. However, businesses with annual sales of 200 million KRW or more or those not actually operating will be disqualified even if they apply.

Online applications began on the 25th of last month, and so far, a total of 400,000 people have completed their applications. Currently, reviews are underway for 350,000 applicants, and full-scale payments are planned to begin from the second week of June once the reviews are completed.

Seo Seong-man, Director of Labor and Livelihood Policy at Seoul City, said, "We hope that the Self-Employed Survival Fund will be a source of hope for small self-employed business owners who suddenly faced difficulties due to COVID-19," and added, "Applications are open until the 30th, so self-employed individuals who have not yet applied should definitely apply to receive support."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.