Choo Kyung-ho: "30,000 Won Accommodation Coupons and 100,000 Won Vacation Expenses... 60 Billion Won Invested"

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choo Kyung-ho announced on the 29th that "discount benefits on essential travel expenses will be provided to a total of 1.53 million people, including 1 million people receiving 30,000 KRW per person for accommodation fees and up to 190,000 people receiving 100,000 KRW each for vacation expenses."

At the Emergency Economic and Livelihood Meeting held at the Presidential Office in Yongsan, Seoul, Deputy Prime Minister Choo said, "The government will also provide up to 60 billion KRW in financial support to revitalize tourism." The government plans to expand and hold more than 130 regional festivals nationwide linked by themes and will issue consumption coupons by local governments.

Deputy Prime Minister for Economy Choo Kyung-ho is delivering opening remarks at the Emergency Economic Measures Meeting held at the Government Seoul Office on the 8th. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

Deputy Prime Minister Choo stated, "We will fully support the successful resumption of regional festivals through expanded free access to public institution accommodations, cultural and sports facilities, and parking lots, as well as sponsorship from local affiliated companies." He added, "We expect many citizens to participate in regional festivals during the two holiday periods in May, including the designated substitute holiday for Buddha’s Birthday."

The income deduction rate for cultural expenses and traditional market spending will be temporarily increased by 10 percentage points (p). Deputy Prime Minister Choo explained, "The recognized items for corporate cultural business expenses will be expanded to include amusement facilities and cable cars," and "Efforts to generate domestic travel demand will be pursued in parallel through support for accommodation expenses to promote the use of annual leave by public officials, encourage discretionary school holidays, and spread travel-friendly work systems in the private sector."

He also presented measures to revitalize inbound tourism by foreigners. He emphasized, "We aim to recover to over 10 million inbound tourists this year by actively improving entry and movement convenience and expanding K-content." He added, "We will improve visa systems such as temporarily exempting electronic travel authorization (K-ETA) for 22 countries and actively increase international flights from China, Japan, and Southeast Asia to support recovery to 80-90% of pre-COVID-19 levels."

Deputy Prime Minister Choo added, "We will significantly raise the purchase limit for Onnuri gift certificates to support increased demand for traditional markets, while continuously alleviating household burdens through reductions in essential living costs such as food, finance, and telecommunications."