Korea Pre-Startup Package (예비창업패키지)
Korea Ministry of SMEs and Startups / KISED · Startup grant
VariesCommercialization funding averaging about KRW 40M per founder (2026 call), plus training and mentoring. Official maximum not confirmed.
Annual government grant for would-be founders in Korea who have not yet registered a business, covering prototype and early commercialization costs.
Key terms
- Applicant must not hold a business registration or be legal representative of a corporation at the reference date
- ~8-month agreement period
- Selected through document review and pitch evaluation run by host institutions (universities etc.)
- Funds are spent against an approved business plan, not paid as free cash
Eligibility
- Where
- South Korea
- Stages
- idea
- Needs VC/accelerator backing
- No
- Needs partner referral code
- No
- Must be incorporated
- No
- AI focus required
- No
- Students / researchers
- Not eligible
- Nonprofits
- Not eligible
Also required
- Pre-founders only (no existing business registration)
How to apply
Apply online via the K-Startup portal when the annual call opens (2026 call ran in March).
- Benefit
- cash
- Equity-free
- Yes
- Decision time
- —
- Credit validity
- —
- Deadline
- Annual (typ. March); 2026 call closed 2026-03-26
- Status
- Paused — next round TBA
Verified 2026-10-23 · source