Preparing a Merchant Association Application for the Traditional Market Revitalization Support Program — Merchant Association Registration and Eligibility for the 2027 Call Closing November 16

Procedure

1. 1. Check whether the merchant association is registered

   Merchants who directly run a business in a market may voluntarily establish a merchant association, a person who establishes one must register it with the city mayor, county head or district head, and an incorporated merchant association must also obtain approval of its articles of association (Special Act on the Development of Traditional Markets and Shopping Districts, Article 65(1) and (3)). The 2027 notice lists proof of the merchant association, such as the registration certificate, as a required document for the Safety Management Package, so an association without a certificate should start with registration (Ministry of SMEs and Startups Notice No. 2026-605).

2. 2. Obtain merchant consent and apply for registration

   A market or shopping district merchant association is established with the consent of at least one half of all merchants or 100 merchants if there are fewer than 300 merchants, at least one third or 250 merchants if there are 300 to fewer than 1,000, and at least one quarter if there are 1,000 or more (Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on the Development of Traditional Markets and Shopping Districts, Article 12(1)). The representative submits a merchant association registration application with a list of consenting merchants, general meeting minutes, bylaws or articles of association, a business plan and a statement of assets to the city mayor, county head or district head, who issues the registration certificate within 14 days of receipt (same Article, paragraphs (3) and (7)).

3. 3. Check eligibility for each program

   The 2027 notice recruits for five programs: Culture and Tourism Market, Market Management Support, Traditional Market Safety Management Package, Regional Product Exhibition Support, and selection of the host for the National Excellent Market Expo. The Culture and Tourism Market requires, as of the closing date, a merchant association membership rate of 80% or more, a membership fee payment rate of 80% or more, a Digital Onnuri Gift Certificate affiliation rate of 70% or more, and a fire mutual aid enrollment rate of 50% or more, while Market Management Support requires a fire mutual aid enrollment rate of 50% or more (Ministry of SMEs and Startups Notice No. 2026-605). Also check whether exclusion grounds apply, such as unpaid fines, restrictions on participation, or unpaid national or local taxes.

4. 4. Complete the notice forms and prepare supporting documents

   The application and business plan (business operation plan for Market Management Support) must be written on the forms posted with the notice, and using any other form excludes the application from evaluation. Only documents issued on or after the notice date (October 20, 2026) or valid beyond the closing date are accepted, and originals bearing the seals of all parties are scanned and uploaded (Ministry of SMEs and Startups Notice No. 2026-605).

5. 5. Local government application and evaluation

   The applicant is the local government: the basic local government officer applies through Sosanggongin24, the metropolitan local government reviews and approves it, and the Small Enterprise and Market Service receives it. After the deadline, no correction, supplementation or replacement is allowed even if there are omissions or errors, the presentation evaluation is in principle given in person by the merchant association president or the local government officer, and final recipients are confirmed after the 2027 budget is finalized (Ministry of SMEs and Startups Notice No. 2026-605).

Required documents

• Merchant association registration application (Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on the Development of Traditional Markets and Shopping Districts, Form No. 11)
• List of consenting merchants
• Merchant association general meeting minutes
• Merchant association bylaws or articles of association
• Merchant association business plan and statement of assets
• Program application and business plan for each program (forms attached to the 2027 notice)
• Proof of the merchant association (such as the registration certificate) and proof of the traditional market (such as the traditional market recognition certificate or large-scale store registration certificate)
• Merchant status list or store register confirmation, and confirmation of fire insurance and storm and flood insurance enrollment (if applicable)

Fees

No fee is set by law or by the notice for merchant association registration or the program application, but if selected, a local and self-funded share applies according to each program's ratio (Market Management Support: national funds 80% or less; Safety Management Package: national funds 70%). Our office fee starts from the amount shown above and may vary depending on the number of merchants, whether the merchant association is already registered, and the volume of supporting documents; we will give you an exact quote after reviewing your documents.

See fees and official charges for this service →

Legal basis and review date

• Special Act on the Development of Traditional Markets and Shopping Districts, Article 2
• Special Act on the Development of Traditional Markets and Shopping Districts, Article 13
• Special Act on the Development of Traditional Markets and Shopping Districts, Article 65
• Enforcement Decree of the Special Act on the Development of Traditional Markets and Shopping Districts, Article 3
• Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on the Development of Traditional Markets and Shopping Districts, Article 12
• Enforcement Rule of the Special Act on the Development of Traditional Markets and Shopping Districts, Form No. 11
• Ministry of SMEs and Startups Notice No. 2026-605 (Revised Notice of the 2027 Traditional Market and Shopping District Revitalization Support Program)

Checked against the statutes on 2026-10-26

Statutes and public notices change, so each case needs to be checked individually. Statute titles are given in English for reference. The Korean statutes are the authoritative text.

Check these first

• Eligibility is judged as of the closing date (November 16, 2026), only documents issued on or after the notice date or valid beyond the closing date are accepted, and no supplementation is allowed after the deadline, so preparation must follow the local government's internal deadline (Ministry of SMEs and Startups Notice No. 2026-605).
• Receiving subsidies by false or fraudulent means may result in imprisonment of up to 10 years or a fine of up to 100,000,000 won and a sanction surcharge of up to 5 times the amount to be returned under the Act on the Management of Subsidies, so merchant numbers and membership rate data must reflect actual conditions (Ministry of SMEs and Startups Notice No. 2026-605).

Frequently asked questions