[Gi Ha-young's Daily Card] 'Emergency Disaster Relief Fund' Card Application Closes on June 5

Donation corrections must be made by June 5
To change the usage area,
application must be made by card

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki Ha-young]Is there anyone these days without at least one credit card? In modern society, anyone can have a card if they want. Credit cards have brought unparalleled convenience to daily life. Now, wherever you go, you can easily see people paying with credit cards or smartphones. As demand has increased, cards with various benefits are being released almost daily. In response, Asia Economy delivers diverse stories related to cards, which are inseparable from our consumer life, through the weekly 'Cards in Daily Life' corner, including introductions of new cards, behind-the-scenes industry stories, and guides for card beginners.

The government's emergency disaster relief fund application using credit and check cards will close on the 5th of next month. If you were planning to receive the disaster relief fund via card, you need to complete your application within two weeks.

The emergency disaster relief fund saw over 90% of households apply within two weeks of the start of applications, excluding vulnerable groups. According to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, as of the 23rd, 92.6% (20.1 million households) of all eligible households have received the relief fund. The total amount applied for is 12.6798 trillion KRW. Among these, households applying via credit and check card charging account for 65.0% of the total, amounting to 9.3036 trillion KRW.

After June 5th, prepaid cards and local love gift certificates can still be applied for at town and township community centers until the 28th of next month. However, those who need to change their usage area due to moving must apply for the disaster relief fund through a card. This is because changing the usage area of the emergency disaster relief fund is only allowed for credit and check card charging funds.

Initially, the emergency disaster relief fund was controversial because it could only be used in the city or province where the head of household's resident registration address was as of March 29th. Currently, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety is working with card companies to establish a system that allows applications for residence changes.

Also, those who mistakenly donated after applying for the disaster relief fund via card must request corrections from the respective card company by the 5th of next month. After that date, corrections will not be possible, so caution is advised. Currently, most card companies operate donation correction systems.

The weekday system applied to offline applications for credit and check card charging funds will be lifted starting the 25th. Online applications have not applied the weekday system since the 16th. Whether the weekday system for community center applications continues depends on the circumstances of each local government. Seven metropolitan local governments including Seoul, Busan, Daegu, Gwangju, Gyeonggi, Jeonnam, and Jeju, as well as Iksan and Sunchang in Jeonbuk, plan to maintain the weekday system for now.

The emergency disaster relief fund must be used by August 31st. Any unused balance after that will be forfeited and returned to the national treasury, so refunds are not possible. Since the emergency disaster relief fund is a temporary government support system to overcome the COVID-19 crisis, why not use it to revitalize the depressed local economy?