"Gyeonggi Local Currency Merchants—Please Rush to Register..."Mandatory Registration from July

[Suwon Ilbo=Park No-hun] Gyeonggi Province urged on the 10th that businesses in the province authorized to accept Gyeonggi local currency should hurry to "register and apply" as merchants.

This follows the amendment and enforcement of the "Act on Promoting the Use of Local Love Gift Certificates" (Local Love Gift Certificates Act) on April 20 this year, under which merchant registration for local currencies becomes mandatory nationwide starting July.

Until now, the province has set guidance periods and grace periods to expand Gyeonggi local currency merchants, allowing businesses that meet requirements such as possessing card terminals to make local currency payments without separate registration procedures.

The grace period ends on June 30, and starting July 1 of the following day, Gyeonggi local currency payments at unregistered merchants will be restricted.

Accordingly, registration targets exclude department stores, large supermarkets, entertainment and gambling establishments, and large-scale businesses, encompassing all Gyeonggi Province-based businesses authorized to accept Gyeonggi local currency.

Eligible businesses can apply online through the Gyeonggi local currency mobile app or the merchant registration website (with.konacard.co.kr) by 6 p.m. on the 30th, or visit their respective municipal and county departments to apply in person.

Prior to this measure, the province has made various efforts to minimize inconveniences that residents and small business owners could experience due to Gyeonggi local currency payment restrictions.

To this end, since April, the province has operated a "Gyeonggi Local Currency Merchant Concentrated Registration Period" and, in cooperation with cities and counties within the province, encourages registration through various methods including mail and text message distribution and in-person business visits.

In particular, by reducing the merchant registration completion period by approximately one-third compared to the statutory processing deadline of 7 days, the province has enabled business owners to complete merchant registration within 2 days after application and submission.

Kim Sang-soo, director of the Regional Finance Division at Gyeonggi Province, said, "Gyeonggi local currency merchant registration is an essential procedure for fair local currency circulation and efficient merchant management," and added, "Please cooperate so that merchant registrations can be completed by the deadline to prevent inconvenience such as payment restrictions."

Meanwhile, "Gyeonggi local currency" is a project that Gyeonggi Province has been implementing since April 2019 to revitalize the local economy and create a virtuous cycle of economic circulation. Over time, combined with incentive policies to promote various resident welfare, it has captured "two birds"—both "economy" and "welfare," and received the Presidential Award in the government's "Local Love Gift Certificate Performance and Best Practice Evaluation" in December last year.