[Korea SMEs and Startups Agency]
[Korea SMEs and Startups Agency]

'Business Support Corps Field Clinic' open for rolling applications; government covers 80% of consulting fees

Experts in 12 fields — management, technology, tax, labor, patent and more — visit companies on-site

General consulting capped at 3 days; startups and exporters eligible for up to 7 days

Small businesses and self-employed entrepreneurs can now have specialists in management, technology, taxation, labor and other fields visit their workplaces for just 70,000 won ($49) a day. The program lets experts diagnose problems that cannot be resolved through phone or counter consultations alone and propose concrete solutions on the spot.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency announced Tuesday they are accepting rolling applications from small enterprises and prospective entrepreneurs for the 2026 Business Support Corps Field Clinic program.

Under the program, field specialists visit participating companies, analyze the root causes of their operational difficulties and offer tailored improvement plans. The program covers 12 areas: startup, finance and funding, accounting and taxation, technology, production management, imports and exports, legal affairs, human resources and labor, management strategy, information systems, marketing and design, and patent.

Eligibility extends to small enterprises as defined under the Framework Act on Small and Medium Enterprises, as well as prospective entrepreneurs. The full daily consulting fee is 350,000 won, with the government subsidizing 80 percent, leaving companies to pay 70,000 won plus value-added tax per day. Businesses facing general management difficulties may receive up to three days of expert consulting, while startups and export-oriented companies are eligible for up to seven days.

Starting this year, the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency joined the program as a new operating body. The agency overhauled its consulting framework to combine AI diagnostic reports — drawn from about 190 million corporate data records held by the agency and Korea Ratings Data — with on-site analysis by field experts.

Program delivery has also been split between two implementing organizations: the Korea Management and Technology Consultants Association and the Korea Productivity Center. Each organization will draw on its own specialist personnel and corporate support experience to match companies with the most suitable expert for the type of difficulty they face.

"Even within the same industry, the challenges each company faces are different, so there is no one-size-fits-all answer," said Ban Jeong-sik, the agency's regional innovation director. "The strength of the Field Clinic is that experts assess a company's situation in person and propose improvement measures tailored to that specific business."

Companies wishing to apply can do so through the SME integrated call center at 1357 or the Business Support Corps website. Those who visit a regional SME and startup office in person can also receive expert recommendations and matching assistance through a consulting officer.


hong@heraldcorp.com