Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) announced that it will expand the number of recipients of dismantling and restoration cost support under the 2025 Small Business Closure Support Program from 100 to 130 businesses this year, in order to reduce the burden and support safe and prompt business closure procedures for local small business owners who are closing (or plan to close) their businesses.
○ This program is a follow-up measure to the Agreement to Strengthen Support for Small Businesses in Busan signed in April last year (April 17, 2024) between the City and New Start Fund Co., Ltd.*, and was introduced to respond to the continued surge in business closures due to the economic downturn and population outflow.
○ The KRW 1 billion provided by New Start Fund Co., Ltd. will be used to cover business closure consultations and dismantling and restoration costs.
* New Start Fund Co., Ltd.: Launched in October 2022 as the nation’s first debt restructuring program exclusively for small business owners and self-employed persons suffering from loan repayment difficulties due to COVID-19 and other factors; operated by the Korea Asset Management Corporation.
The 2025 Small Business Closure Support Program offers comprehensive closure-related services to small business owners considering closing their businesses, including ▲ business closure consultations and ▲ support for closure costs (store dismantling and restoration costs).
○ Free consultations on overall closure processes—including tax and legal consultations—will be provided to small business owners who are closing (or plan to close) their businesses, and dismantling and restoration costs will be supported at KRW 200,000 per pyeong, up to a maximum of KRW 4 million.
Meanwhile, Busan Metropolitan City and New Start Fund Co., Ltd. have been identifying and supporting collaborative projects each year since the signing of the agreement in order to enhance small business owners’ resilience and welfare.
○ Last year, through the Small Business Welfare Support Program, the City supported comprehensive health check-ups worth KRW 250,000 per person for local small business owners. This year, more small business owners will be provided with closure consultations and support through the expansion of the Closure Support Program, helping them recover more quickly.
Small business owners who have signed an agreement with New Start Fund Co., Ltd. and who are closing (or plan to close) their businesses (excluding those in arrears) may apply from today (18th) until the budget is exhausted via the Busan Small Business Support Center website (bsbsc.kr).
○ Required documents include: ▲ application form, ▲ business registration certificate, ▲ certificate of business closure, and ▲ value-added tax return certificate. Detailed information can be found by contacting the Busan Small Business Support Center (Busan Economic Promotion Agency) consultation office (☎1833-3665) or by checking the program announcement on the website (bsbsc.kr).
Kim Bong-cheol, Assistant Mayor of Digital Economy Office, stated, “We appreciate New Start Fund Co., Ltd. and the Korea Asset Management Corporation for their continued willingness to support the recovery of local small business owners facing difficult business conditions, as they did last year,” adding, “We are pleased to be able to help even one more small business owner who is considering closure, and we will continue to discover various forms of collaborative projects and build exemplary cooperative models.”
This content has been translated by AI. Please refer to the attached original Korean version for accuracy if needed.
Translated by AI
Link to Busan press releases in Korean