Jeonbuk Entertainment Business Association, "QR Code Implementation Puts Us at Risk of Closure"... Announces Rally to Defend Livelihood Rights

90% of Entertainment Establishments in the Province Say "It Is for Livelihood"

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Geon-ju] Owners of entertainment establishments in Jeonbuk Province are demanding that the Jeonbuk provincial government devise countermeasures, claiming they are facing severe threats to their livelihoods due to the QR code system introduced by the government.

The Jeonbuk Entertainment Establishments Association stated, "Entertainment establishments are suffering more than small business owners amid the spread of COVID-19. Entertainment venues cannot access small business loans and have been unable to operate for a month due to administrative orders, putting over 1,500 establishments in Jeonbuk at risk of losing their means of survival." They added, "To make matters worse, the introduction of the QR code system has pushed us to the brink of closure."

The QR code system, piloted from the 1st of this month, is an 'electronic entry log' implemented by the government to prevent the spread of COVID-19. It applies to people wishing to use multi-use facilities such as entertainment venues, PC rooms, clubs, and karaoke rooms.

The government introduced the QR code system as a preventive measure against the risk of cluster infections associated with the use of multi-use facilities like entertainment venues and karaoke rooms.

Taxes imposed on entertainment establishments vary by region, with higher taxes levied in areas with higher official land prices. When a building houses an entertainment establishment, a so-called 'entertainment tax,' which is a surcharge on property tax, must be paid separately for the building and the land.

Compared to general businesses, entertainment establishments face a 16-fold surcharge on property tax, a 13% individual consumption tax on card sales, and income taxes on employees, resulting in taxes amounting to 40-45% of their sales.

In Jeonju City, based on the area with the highest official land price, the annual tax imposed on entertainment establishments is about 30 million KRW. The current legal standards and tax system for entertainment establishments date back to the 1980s during the Chun Doo-hwan administration, created for public pacification and foreign currency earnings, and these decades-old laws are still applied as is.

The secretary-general of the Jeonbuk Entertainment Establishments Association said, "In Gyeonggi Province, the governor recently authorized loans of 20 million KRW at 2% annual interest to all entertainment establishments in the province." He urged, "Jeonbuk should promptly establish rescue measures for entertainment establishments facing closure, similar to Gyeonggi Province."

He continued, "In Jeonbuk, 90% of entertainment pubs are small-scale businesses that survive day-to-day," emphasizing, "While we cannot criticize government policies, entertainment business owners, who cannot take another step back, may have to hold protest rallies to defend their right to livelihood."

Meanwhile, the government's QR code electronic entry log requires individuals wishing to visit entertainment establishments to download an app from Naver, consent to personal information use, and then present the generated QR code to the business owner. Entertainment business owners criticize this complicated procedure, saying it is driving the entertainment industry to the brink of collapse.

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