Business people scheduled for emergency overseas trips can get vaccinated within 1 month

The South Korean government decided to introduce a “vaccine fast track” within this year in order to allow business people scheduled for overseas trips to win or sign a contract to be vaccinated within 1 month.

The government announced the plan along with the measures to boost and sophisticate winning overseas business contracts at a ministerial meeting on international economy policies presided by the Minister of Economy and Finance and Deputy Prime Minister Hong Nam-ki. Currently, it takes about three months for business people to sign up for and finish vaccination. Those who need to go on an emergency overseas trip to sign a contract or attend an event for an investment agreement may not be able to go due to unfinished vaccination. In order to address such an issue, a fast-track system will be introduced to allow business people scheduled for emergency overseas trips to sign up for vaccination and complete it within one month.

The scope of priority people eligible for vaccination prior to emergency overseas trips will expand. Currently, only those who are going on a short-term business trip for three months or less or on a long-term business trip for over a year are eligible. However, under the new policy, business people who are going on a business trip for three months to one year, as well as their family members, will be included in the priority group. A new channel will be set up to communicate with governments to compensate for construction delays that are unavoidable due to COVID-19 and allow exceptional entries into the country. Financial support to businesses will be expanded, along with support for new market entries and business promotion.

The government will actively support South Korean companies’ overseas business activities based on the belief that external economic activities, such as export, are the key to the recovery of economic activities in the second half of this year. Companies’ active business activities in overseas markets will accelerate the speed of economic recovery while the domestic market is still in recession. “We will provide even more active support so that external policies can help with the South Korean economy’s complete recovery and structural transition to a leading economy,” said Deputy Prime Minister Hong Nam-ki.


Choong-Hyun Song balgun@donga.com