Incheon City Opens Online Application for Small Business Emergency Disaster Relief Fund... Additional Support to Government Aid

50,000 to 150,000 KRW for Small Business Owners under Gathering Restrictions
Applications Open from Noon on February 1, Close on the 26th

Incheon Mayor Park Nam-chun is announcing the 'COVID-19, Incheon-style Livelihood Economy Support Measures.' January 20, 2021.
[Photo by Incheon City]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Incheon City will begin accepting online applications for the Incheon-style emergency disaster relief fund from noon on the 1st, targeting small business owners in industries subject to gathering bans and restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

This relief fund is a measure under the 'COVID-19 Incheon-style Livelihood Economy Support Plan' announced by Mayor Park Namchun on the 20th, utilizing 45.4 billion KRW from the disaster management fund.

The eligible recipients are small business owners who have received the "Butimok" fund support from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and they can receive additional support from Incheon City on top of the government aid. The support amount per business is 1.5 million KRW for businesses under gathering bans, 1 million KRW for businesses with eased gathering bans, and 500,000 KRW for businesses under gathering restrictions.

Unregistered business operators, businesses that are temporarily or permanently closed or effectively closed with no sales, and those who have already received disaster relief funds from Incheon City's tourism businesses are excluded from eligibility.

Online applications will be accepted until February 26 through the Incheon City or district/county websites.

From February 1 to 10, applications will be accepted only on days corresponding to the last digit of the business registration number being odd or even. Small business owners who find online application difficult can visit the district/county office where their business is located from February 17 to 26 to apply in person.

The city plans to process online applications promptly and start distributing the emergency disaster relief funds sequentially from the 5th, before the Lunar New Year holiday. Additionally, if the application information is found to be false, does not meet eligibility criteria, or in cases of duplicate or fraudulent claims, recovery measures will be taken.

For detailed information, please check the Incheon City website, and for other inquiries, contact the Michuhol Call Center at 032-120.

Byun Jooyoung, Head of Incheon City's Job and Economy Headquarters, urged, "To ensure the swift payment of the disaster relief funds, please adhere to the odd-even business registration number system and, if possible, apply after the third day."

Meanwhile, Incheon City will independently invest an additional 570 billion KRW, separate from the government's third disaster relief fund, to support small business owners and vulnerable groups struggling due to the prolonged COVID-19 crisis.

The city will provide 45.4 billion KRW from its budget to small business owners classified under gathering bans and restrictions who have suffered losses, and inject 12.4 billion KRW in emergency disaster relief funds to strengthen the safety net for vulnerable groups and industries that fall outside government support.

Support payments of 500,000 KRW will be given to cultural and artistic workers facing difficulties, 1 million KRW to tourism businesses, and an average of 1.13 million KRW by scale to daycare centers.

For businesses offering "Good Rent" discounts, property tax will be reduced by 50%, and living stabilization funds of 500,000 KRW for corporate taxi drivers and 1 million KRW for charter bus drivers will be provided.

The youth support program will also expand its target from 320 to 640 people, providing the Youth Dream Check Card with 500,000 KRW per month for six months, totaling 3 million KRW.

Additionally, to help small business owners recover sales, the regional currency "Incheon e-eum" card cashback benefit of 10% (for monthly payments under 500,000 KRW) will be extended until the end of this year. To support this, an additional 115.1 billion KRW will be invested on top of the total cashback budget of 195 billion KRW, including 94 billion KRW in national funds.

Special financial support totaling 402.5 billion KRW will also be implemented, including 202.5 billion KRW for the livelihood stabilization of small business owners and vulnerable groups, and 200 billion KRW for SME management funds.

This livelihood economy support targets a total of 1.02 million people, with financial support amounting to 402.5 billion KRW and direct support of 172.9 billion KRW, totaling 575.4 billion KRW. The city plans to promptly proceed with executable projects so that payments to citizens can begin before the Lunar New Year.

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