The Ministry of SMEs and Startups said on the 5th it is inviting candidate projects for the new designation of "metropolitan-linked regulatory free zones," targeting metropolitan governments outside the capital area.
Introduced in 2019, the "regulatory free zone" system grants special exemptions for a set period to support demonstrations and commercialization of new technologies and services, aimed at fostering strategic and innovative industries in regions outside the capital area.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) designated 42 regulatory free zones over 10 rounds through last year, easing regulations in new technology and new industry fields. It also provided fiscal support to help lay the foundation for innovative growth in regions outside the capital area.
Industry has said demonstrations across the entire value chain and swift regulatory overhaul are needed. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) will newly introduce a "metropolitan-linked regulatory free zone" to resolve regulations across the industrial supply chain and will begin full-fledged work for new designations this year.
A metropolitan-linked regulatory free zone is jointly planned and operated by two or more local governments through linkage and cooperation. It is expected to make large-scale and complex demonstrations—difficult to pursue at the individual local government level—a reality.
To generate results from the metropolitan-linked regulatory free zones, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) will support not only regulatory relaxation but also demonstration R&D and related infrastructure building. It will also invest resources in commercialization to expedite market entry of new products and services based on demonstration results.
The candidate projects this time are five business models: ▲ smart agriculture ▲ new distribution and logistics ▲ new marine leisure ▲ medical tourism ▲ hydrogen. Each local government can use these as references to design a metropolitan-linked regulatory free zone that reflects local conditions and industry-specific characteristics.
Two or more metropolitan governments must jointly apply for candidate projects, and proposals are accepted from Mar. 9 to 13. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) will select about three candidate projects through document and presentation reviews, and will flesh out the zone plans through expert consulting and consultations with relevant ministries.
New metropolitan-linked regulatory free zones will be finally designated by the Minister of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) in the first half of this year after deliberation and resolution by the regulatory free zone deliberation committee and the special zone committee.
Details are available on the websites of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) and the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technolog (KIAT). Briefings will be held for metropolitan governments outside the capital area to provide guidance on the direction of zone designation, how to prepare proposals, and the designation schedule, followed by Q&A sessions.