Bucheon City Provides Up to 1 Million Won Support to Small Business Owners Affected by 'COVID-19'

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] Bucheon City in Gyeonggi Province will provide emergency disaster relief funds of 500,000 to 1,000,000 KRW per person to small business owners struggling due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

On the 20th, Bucheon Mayor Jang Deokcheon held a briefing and announced, "We will support emergency disaster relief funds worth 20.755 billion KRW for small business owners in the region affected by COVID-19."

The support amount will be 500,000 KRW in cash per small business owner affected by COVID-19. In particular, small business owners of multi-use facilities such as sports, culture, and leisure that were closed due to administrative orders related to social distancing, as well as stationery stores and snack bars that suffered losses due to school closures, will receive an additional 500,000 KRW, totaling 1,000,000 KRW.

The eligibility criteria require small business owners who registered their business in Bucheon before January 1 of this year and until the application start date on the 27th of this month, with an annual sales revenue of 300 million KRW or less last year.

Additionally, they must have experienced a decrease of 20% or more in average monthly sales during the three months from January to March this year compared to the average monthly sales last year.

Bucheon City estimates that about 37,200 small business owners meet these criteria. Small business owners engaged in entertainment, gambling, and speculative industries are excluded from this support.

Applications for the support funds can be submitted from the 27th of this month until the 31st of next month, either by visiting local administrative welfare centers or through the Bucheon City website.

Mayor Jang said, "Small business owners are the foundation and hope of the local economy. I hope this emergency disaster relief fund will be a source of strength for small business owners struggling due to the spread of COVID-19 and help revive the depressed local economy."