If a small business owner currently undergoing personal rehabilitation procedure pays off their debts diligently for more than a year, the 'personal rehabilitation record' will be deleted immediately. This reflects the appeals of small business owners who have been disadvantaged by having their personal rehabilitation information shared with financial institutions for up to five years.
The Financial Services Commission held the first on-site meeting to address financial difficulties for small business owners on the afternoon of the 8th, chaired by Secretary-General Kwon Dae-young, to discuss such measures.
The Financial Services Commission plans to establish the basis for early deletion of public information in cases where the court rehabilitation procedure is diligently performed for more than a year. It also plans to discuss retroactive application for those who have already received the court's rehabilitation decision before the regulation amendment.
Currently, small business owners undergoing court rehabilitation, bankruptcy, or debt adjustment procedures have their debt adjustment information shared with financial institutions through credit bureaus for up to five years. This issue was raised during a town hall meeting in Chungcheong, presided over by President Lee Jae-myung, held in Daejeon on the 4th. At that time, an attendee noted, 'Information from the start of individual bankruptcy or rehabilitation procedure to the discharge decision is registered as public information with the credit bureau after notification by the court,' adding, 'While this history is stored, credit card issuance and small loans are blocked, restricting financial transactions.'
President Lee said at the time, 'Gather small business owners in debt and hold a group discussion,' and the Financial Services Commission promptly prepared follow-up measures. Secretary-General Kwon noted at the on-site meeting that 'In accordance with the President's request to address issues that can be resolved immediately during last week's town hall meeting, we organized today's meeting to create and improve policies centering on the field.'
Currently, the debt adjustment programs of the Personal Work-out program (Korea’s New Start Fund) and the New Start Fund (KAMP) delete public information early if the debt is diligently repaid for a year according to the agreement.