Gwangju City "Apply for Small Business Support Fund"

Payment of 100,000 KRW for General Businesses with Sales Decrease Under 400 Million KRW

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Gwangju Metropolitan City announced on the 7th that, according to the announcement by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, from the 11th, small business owners facing difficulties due to strengthened social distancing measures can apply for the ‘Support Fund’.

Businesses subject to closure orders will receive 3 million KRW, and those under operating restrictions will receive 2 million KRW.

General businesses that opened before November 30, 2020, with annual sales under 400 million KRW and experienced a decrease in sales can receive 1 million KRW.

This amount includes the business damage support fund (1 million KRW) plus an additional 2 million KRW or 1 million KRW for fixed cost relief such as rent for businesses under closure or operating restrictions, respectively.

The support targets are ▲ small business owners operating entertainment bars, karaoke bars, emotional bars, hunting pochas, colatecs, indoor sports facilities of the GX type, holdem pubs, and party rooms who complied with closure orders, and ▲ small business owners operating singing practice rooms, indoor standing performance halls, direct sales promotion centers, restaurants and cafes, indoor sports facilities (excluding GX type), bathhouses, arcades and multi-rooms, cinemas, academies and private institutes, and lodging facilities who complied with operating restrictions.

Small business owners who are not subject to closure orders or operating restrictions but had annual sales under 400 million KRW in 2020 and experienced a sales decline compared to the previous year (2019) can receive the 1 million KRW business damage support fund.

For businesses opened last year, support is provided if the annualized sales from September to December are under 400 million KRW and the December sales are less than the average monthly sales from September to November. Sales volume is calculated based on credit card, cash receipt, and electronic tax invoice data from September to December held by the National Tax Service.

Support is only available to businesses opened before November 30, 2020, for closure, operating restriction, and general business categories.

However, businesses that violated closure or operating restriction measures are excluded from support and will be subject to recovery if violations are confirmed.

Additionally, some sectors such as gambling-related businesses, professional occupations like lawyers, hospitals, pharmacies, and financial and insurance-related businesses are not eligible for the Support Fund.

The Support Fund application will be available online starting on the 11th.

Small business owners identified through administrative information as belonging to closure or operating restriction sectors and those who received the New Hope Fund last year due to sales decline can apply from the 11th.

Those who receive a text message and apply immediately from the 11th may receive the support fund as early as the afternoon of the 11th or the morning of the 12th.

To facilitate smooth applications, on the 11th and 12th, applications will be accepted based on the parity of the last digit of the business registration number.

For businesses not identified through administrative information, small business owners with co-representatives, and those who file VAT returns late, payments will be made after verification in February to March. Detailed information will be announced later by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.

More detailed support criteria, text message schedules, application procedures, and other information can be obtained from the dedicated Support Fund call center.

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