FUNDING & SUPPORT

6 Things Companies Should Check Before the August 24 Deadline for the Second Public Institution Verification Support Program

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) is accepting applications for the second round of the Public Institution Verification Support Program for R&D products from August 10 to August 24 (Notice No. 2026-497). The program provides up to 30 million won per product, covering 80% of verification costs on a reimbursement basis, where participating companies execute costs first and are later settled after verification by the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency (KOSME). Applications are divided into two tracks: the 'demand-driven' track where public institutions state their needs, and the 'proposal-driven' track where companies designate institutions, with the proposal-driven track limited to one application per product per company. The proposal-driven track requires selecting an institution from a list of 862 public institutions for 2026, followed by passing the institution's confirmation of participation. While verification selection does not guarantee procurement, verification history and official test certificates can potentially be utilized as performance data in subsequent bidding and certification procedures.