"One-Year Debt Repayment Deferral for Wildfire Victims... Up to 70% Principal Reduction"

Debt Repayment Deferral of Up to 5 Years for Small Business Owners in the Area

[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] The Credit Recovery Committee has decided to grant residents affected by recent large-scale wildfires in Gyeongbuk Uljin and Gangwon Samcheok a debt repayment deferral of up to one year. For some, principal reductions of up to 70% will also be supported.

The Credit Recovery Committee announced on the 8th that it has been implementing such debt adjustment support measures since the day before for residents affected in Gyeongbuk Uljin and Gangwon Samcheok, which were recently declared special disaster areas due to large-scale wildfires.

First, residents of the special disaster areas can receive a repayment deferral for up to one year (in six-month increments). Additionally, if a disaster victim’s loan is overdue by more than 90 days and they have obtained a 'Disaster Damage Confirmation Certificate' from the local government, principal reductions of up to 70% will be supported. However, this applies only to written-off debts. For non-written-off debts, reductions of up to 30% will be supported.

For individual business owners and small and medium-sized enterprises that have suspended or closed operations due to the disaster, if the overdue period exceeds 90 days and they have obtained a 'Disaster Damage Confirmation Certificate' from the local government, repayment deferrals of up to five years will be supported. If the principal after debt adjustment is 200 million KRW or less, deferral is possible for up to three years; if it exceeds 200 million KRW, deferral is possible for up to five years.

Consultations and applications are available through the Credit Recovery Committee’s website, call center, and integrated support centers for low-income finance nationwide. Lee Jaeyeon, Chairman of the Credit Recovery Committee, stated, "We will spare no effort to actively support the residents of Gyeongbuk Uljin and Gangwon Samcheok, who are facing difficulties due to the wildfire damage, to reduce their debt repayment burdens and recover quickly."

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