Ministry of SMEs and Startups: "Alleviating U.S. Tariff Management Burdens Through Logistics and Financial Support"

"SME Customs Issues Review Meeting" Held
Assessing the Impact of Tariffs on Export-Oriented SMEs and Discussing Support Measures

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced that on September 9, it held the "SME Customs Issues Review Meeting" at the Korea Federation of SMEs in Seoul, presided over by Vice Minister Noh Yongseok, with export-oriented SMEs and related organizations in attendance.

This meeting was the first to be held following the announcement of the "Support Measures for SMEs in Response to the Implementation of U.S. Reciprocal Tariffs" on September 3. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss ways to ensure that the support policies included in the measures are quickly and effectively implemented in the field.

Participants included SMEs exporting the top 10 items to the United States, as well as related organizations such as the Korea Federation of SMEs, Korea Venture Business Association, Korea Startup Forum, Korea SMEs and Startups Agency, Korea SMEs Distribution Center, Korea Commission for Corporate Partnership, Korea Startup Promotion Agency, and Korea Technology Finance Corporation, all of which are export and financial support institutions for SMEs.

Noh Yongseok, Vice Minister of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, is delivering a speech at the "SME Customs Issues Review Meeting" held on the 9th at the Korea Federation of SMEs in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. Ministry of SMEs and Startups

During the meeting, participants discussed the impact of the implementation of reciprocal and item-specific tariffs and the abolition of the de minimis exemption system on different industries, as well as the resulting export challenges faced by SMEs.

In particular, export-oriented SMEs raised a variety of on-site difficulties, including: ▲the financial burden of diversifying export destinations, ▲the need to ease management challenges through logistics and financial support, ▲difficulties in confirming whether products are subject to item-specific tariffs and in calculating value content, and ▲the abolition of the de minimis exemption for small parcels.

Additionally, there was discussion on the rapid implementation of key tasks from the "Support Measures for SMEs in Response to the Implementation of U.S. Reciprocal Tariffs," support for entry into emerging markets such as the Global South, and the provision of key customs information to SMEs.

At the meeting, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced plans to strengthen support for responding to U.S. tariffs, including: ▲enhanced on-site, financial, and logistics support, ▲specialized market entry strategies for key, emerging, and new markets, ▲responses to non-tariff barriers such as export regulations, and ▲closer cooperation with Korean organizations and local partners in the U.S.

Vice Minister Noh stated, "We have continued to develop and announce additional support measures by reflecting the ever-changing trade environment and the voices from the field, including the SME customs response support plans in February and May and the support measures for the full-scale implementation of reciprocal tariffs in September." He added, "We will work to alleviate management burdens caused by tariffs through logistics and financial support, while also actively supporting entry into emerging markets such as the Global South."