[Chuseok Livelihood Measures] 43 Trillion KRW Newly Supplied to Small Businesses and SMEs... Diesel and CNG Fuel Subsidies Extended for 2 Months

19th Emergency Economic and Livelihood Meeting
Request for Early Payment of Subcontracting Fees
Postponement of Insurance Premium Payments for Small Businesses

The government will provide 43 trillion won to small business owners and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) ahead of Chuseok. Following the extension of the fuel tax reduction, the fuel price-linked subsidies for diesel and compressed natural gas (CNG), mainly used by freight trucks, route buses, and taxis, will also be extended until October.

On the 31st, the government announced the "Chuseok Livelihood Stabilization Measures" at the 19th Emergency Economic and Livelihood Meeting. To support the cash flow of small business owners and SMEs during the holiday period, it plans to supply a record-high amount of 43 trillion won. Specifically, this includes 38.33 trillion won in loans and 4.4 trillion won in guarantees. The loans will be handled by the Bank of Korea (208.5 billion won), policy banks (5.8 trillion won), and commercial banks (31.325 trillion won).

For traditional market merchants, the government plans to support 5 billion won in payments for purchasing popular products over two months before the Chuseok holiday (July 28 to September 27). To enable early payment of subcontracting fees, it will establish 10 "Unfair Subcontracting Reporting Centers" across five regions nationwide, and if the delivery deadline falls immediately after the Chuseok holiday (September 28 to October 1), it will request cooperation from demand institutions to allow deadline extensions beyond the holiday.

For companies affected by recent heavy rains and export SMEs with poor first-half performance, the deadline for corporate tax interim payments will be extended by two months from this month to October. However, this is limited to companies registered on the National Disaster Safety Portal and export SMEs whose first-quarter sales have decreased compared to the previous year. For small businesses with fewer than 30 regular employees, payment of employment and industrial accident insurance premiums for October to December will also be deferred.

To reduce energy costs for small business owners, support for installment payments of electricity and gas bills for up to six months will be provided. Yoon In-dae, Director of Economic Policy at the Ministry of Economy and Finance, said, "We judged that wage payments to workers are very important ahead of the holiday, so we requested active cooperation through major economic organizations and will ensure prompt provision in the public sector as well."

Support for low-income and vulnerable groups will also be strengthened. By the end of the year, 10,000 households living in abnormal residences will be supported to move to normal housing, and interest-free loans for deposits when moving to private rental housing will be expanded from 50 million won to 80 million won. For households living in public rental housing facing eviction due to rent arrears of three months or more, up to 3 million won per household will be provided in September to those in financial hardship. Additionally, tenants for 68,000 public rental units will be recruited by the end of this year, and 107,000 new units will be supplied within the year. Newly constructed rental units will be supplied with over 95% having exclusive areas of 31㎡ or more, improving quality through built-in items and finishing materials.

Following the extension of the fuel tax reduction scheduled to end in August, the fuel price-linked subsidies for diesel and CNG used by freight trucks and buses will be extended for an additional two months until October. Specifically, subsidies will be paid for 50% of the amount exceeding 1,700 won per liter for diesel and 50% of the amount exceeding 1,330 won per cubic meter for CNG. To reduce heating cost burdens, the winter energy voucher amount will be doubled from 152,000 won to 304,000 won. The minimum fee tier for 5G (5th generation mobile communication) will be further reduced from the current 40,000 won range, and consultations with service providers will be pursued to improve the fee structure to better match usage by diversifying small volume tiers.